"Guarding Elizabeth"
Prologue

Rated: NC17

Disclaimer: Don’t own anything, except the story.

Summary: Elizabeth Summers is forced to go into government protection when her father’s business causes threats to be made on her life. While in hiding Elizabeth becomes smitten with one of her guards and tries her best to tempt him in any way imaginable.
Special Agent William "Spike" Hawthorne was leading the good life. He was happily engaged to his girlfriend of five years and was finally settling into his work at the bureau. But, like always nothing good lasts forever. Spike is assigned to an important case that forces him to abandon the comfort and security of his happy life. His assignment turns out to be more then he can handle. After meeting Elizabeth and feeling something stir deep inside he starts to question everything in his life. Will he be able to resist temptation or give in to the passion growing inside him?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Are you sure that this must be done?" Hank Summers asked one of his security agents from his seat behind the executive mahogany desk that lined the far wall of his office.

"Yes, Mr. Summers. If you wish to ensure the safety of your daughter you must follow our orders."

Hank exhaled roughly. He ran his hand through his thin brown hair before bringing it to rest under his chin. He eyed the men standing in his office warily. He didn’t trust them, but then again he didn’t trust anyone lately. The past two months had been hell on him and his family. His business was the main cause of it all. But, because he was successful in what he did he refused to give it up, let alone allow idle threats from foreign citizens deter him from building. He had never had this kind of problem before. There had always been activist groups that protested the cutting down of trees or the disturbance his company brought to their land, but never had they threatened his family.

"What do I have to do?" He asked finally giving in.

One of the agents cleared his throat and stepped up closer to the desk.

"You have to place your daughter under our care," he explained. "Your wife as well."

"My wife won’t leave my side," Hank interrupted, shaking his head as he leaned back in his leather chair. "She only cares about the safety of Elizabeth."

The agent that was standing closest to him glanced over his shoulder to one of his colleagues. His colleague nodded his head, letting him know that this was not a problem and to proceed with relaying the plans to Mr. Summers.

"We will treat your daughter as if she is under witness protection and send her away to a secluded place with two of our best agents. You and your wife will not be allowed to contact her, nor will she be able to contact anyone including you."

"I don’t know about this," Hank commented shakily. "Elizabeth won’t like not being able to see her friends."

The agent that seemed to be in charge of the whole group moved forward to convince Hank of their plan.

"Sir, what is more important right now? Your daughters happiness or her life?"

Hank starred at the man who had asked him such a bold question. Of course his daughters life was more important than anything, but her happiness was her life. It was his life. He only wanted her to be happy…and safe.

"Very well. When do I meet these two agents who will be guarding her?"

"Tomorrow. Tonight you will have to tell you daughter and your wife what is going on. Until then we will prepare everything and make sure all is running smoothly."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"No!" Eighteen-year-old Elizabeth Anne Summers yelled while standing up from her dining room chair abruptly. "I don’t want to leave Sunnydale!"

"Honey, please. Your father is only doing what’s in you best interest." Joyce Summers said, trying hard to calm her daughter before she did something she would regret.

"If he wanted to do what was in my interest he would call of this project in Africa," Elizabeth snapped back quickly. "But since all he cares about is money, I’m the one that has to leave my friends behind and boyfriend."

"That’s enough!" Hank shouted, slamming his hands loudly against the table. "One more word out of you and I will change my mind about this whole free vacation and lock you up in an institute instead."

"Hank," Joyce chastised.

"Joyce, your daughter is one word away from me not caring about her safety and throwing her over to the MuHads myself."

"Go ahead," Elizabeth challenged. "I’d rather live with them then two old geezers form the FBI. At least with them I’m sure I’ll have some excitement."

Hank stood up, knocking over his chair in the process, and pointed one long finger at his daughter. "Go up to your room now. You are not allowed to talk to anyone, not Willow, not Angel, no one."

"What?"

"In two days you are getting on that plane and until then you are not to breath a word to anyone about what is happening."

Elizabeth crossed her arms defiantly. She was prepared to argue with her dear Daddy some more, but once she caught sight of the pleading look on her mother’s face she decided against it and swirled around to stomp noisily up to her room.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Can you believe it Wills?" Elizabeth asked while painting her toenails. "He actually expects me to drop my life and live god knows where while he settles this whole thing over in Africa."

Once Elizabeth had entered her room and slammed the door, she immediately picked up her cordless phone on her bedside table and called her best friend Willow. She didn’t care what danger it might’ve caused, she trusted Willow and knew that anything she told her would be kept between them. Now after spending two hours on the phone they were still on the subject of her Father and what an ass he was being.

"Well, Buffy," Willow said, using the nickname for her friend that she had made up in middle school. "Maybe you should do what he says."

"Oh, no. Not you too Wills," Buffy grumbled, wiping her finger over a smudge on her big toe. "I thought for sure that you, as my best friend, would agree with me on this 100 percent."

"I do agree with you Buffy," Willow defended. "Its just that form what you’ve told me about these threats they seem kinda scary and …and well maybe its safer if you go into hiding."

"Hiding," Buffy scoffed distastefully. "I prefer to call it ‘sending me away to a boarding school’ cause that’s what its like. I mean it might as well be an all girls boarding school if I have to stay with two old men who clean their weapons on a nightly basis and hit the sheets around nine o’clock every night."

"Buffy it might not be that bad."

"Believe me if my father has anything to do with this master plan then it will be that bad."

"Elizabeth, honey are you talking on the phone?"

"Oh shit," Buffy whispered under her breath, rolling to a sitting position on her bed. "Willow I have to go my mom’s outside my bedroom door."

"Alright. Call me later if you want to talk."

"Okay, bye."

"Bye."

Buffy hung up the phone and tossed it under one of her pillows just before her mom opened the door and peeked her head in.

"Elizabeth you know what will happen if your father catches you on the phone."

Buffy smiled, her brain thinking of a nasty response to her mother’s remark. "He’ll suffer a heart attack and I wont have to go away because being with him in his time of need is so much more important then my safety."

Joyce shook her head softly. "Elizabeth that’s not a nice thing to say."

"Sorry mom."

Joyce stepped into the room and shut the door behind her. She made her way over to her daughter’s bed and sat down on the edge.

"Sweetie, I know how hard this is for you. And, I understand why you don’t want to leave. But, can you at least try to understand why your father has to do this?"

"No."

"Fine. Since you wont do it for him will you do it for me. I am worried about you Elizabeth and I don’t know what I’d do if something happened to you. I don’t think I could live if something happened to my little baby girl."

Buffy watched as her mother broke into tears. She hated seeing her mother cry, especially when it was over something she was half the cause of.

"Yes, mom."

Joyce halted her tears and looked up at into her daughter’s hazel eyes.

"On one condition," Buffy said, raising one finger into the air. "You have to tell daddy that I’m only doing this because of you and that he had no effect on my decision."

Joyce laughed at her daughter’s request before pulling her into her arms and hugging her tightly.

"I’ll go inform your father that everything is settled," Joyce told her, getting up to leave the room.

Buffy waited for her mom to leave before fishing for her phone under the pillow and hitting redial.

"Hello."

"Well, Wills looks like I’m gonna be going away for awhile."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


"Guarding Elizabeth"
Chapter I

Rated: NC17

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Mr. Summers here are the two agents that will be watching over your daughter."

Hank looked up from the papers an agent had spread out before him to look over. He saw two men coming through the door to his office and walking towards his desk. He noticed they seemed rather young and this irritated him for some reason.

"I thought you said two of your best men would be assigned to the job?" He asked not halting his assessment of the two agents. "These two look young enough to be my sons."

"Sir, I assure you that they are completely capable to do the job," the senior agent who had informed him of their arrival told him. "This is Special Agent Alexander Harris and Special…"

"How old are they?" Hank interrupted, raking his eyes over the agent who had bleached hair. For some reason this one left a bitter taste in his mouth.

"They are both twenty-five years of age, sir."

Hank came around his desk to stand in front of it. He strolled over to stand beside the agent named Harris and studied him closely. The young agent stood stock still, his jaw tight. Hank nodded his approval. The other agent, who had not been named yet, was the next one he studied. He circled him, moving his eyes up and down the young man before letting his gaze fall on his face. He took in the bleached hair and the high cheekbones and grunted his disapproval.

"I don’t want these two protecting my daughter." Hank scoffed. "They might take advantage of the situation presented to them. A vulnerable teenager right at their finger tips. I don’t like it."

"With all do respect, sir." The still unnamed agent spoke up. "Agent Harris here is a happily married man, and I am engaged. We have no intentions of looking at your daughter in any way besides as an assignment."

Hank scowled at the blond agent but reluctantly took his statement for what it was worth and nodded his head in understanding.

"You have a British accent," Hank noted. "Are you even an American citizen?"

"I was born in Greenville, California, but I lived most of my life in England with both my parents who are British as well," Agent Hawthorne replied. "So, legally I am an American citizen."

"Hmmm."

"As Special Agent William Hawthorne pointed out this is a job to them. They will treat it with the utmost professionalism possible."

"Very well," Hank said solemnly. "Let’s discuss what is going to be done for my daughter."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Agent Harris and Agent Hawthorne exited the building and entered the busy streets of downtown Sunnydale. Hawthorne quickly went to work searching for his smokes while Harris checked his watch.

"I am so glad we are not protecting that man," Harris breathed in relief, looking up towards the sky. "My nerves would be shot to hell within five minutes of being alone with him."

Hawthorne puffed on his fag before plucking the thin stick from his lips to add his own thoughts to his partner’s remark. "His daughter won’t be much easier."

Harris looked over at the man standing beside him and furrowed his brows. Before he could question what he meant Hawthorne was walking off down the sidewalk.

"What do you mean?" Harris asked finally catching up.

"Come on Xander get a clue. If the old man is that uptight about his daughter then she must be one high maintenance bird."

"I don’t think so Spike," Xander argued shoving his hands into his pants pockets as the strolled past several eateries. "I think she’ll be exactly like her father described her. Vulnerable with a little bit of shyness on the side."

Spike laughed at his partners foolishness. He knew without a doubt this assignment was going to be one adventure after the next and he definitely wasn’t looking forward to it.

"So, how’s Cordy taking the news of you leaving?"

"She’s seven months pregnant. How do you think she’s taking it?"

"That bad, eh?"

"Well, after the crying stopped and she finally let me into the room I was able to calm her down enough to explain the importance of this," Xander said. "Plus, after informing her of the extra financial help I’ll ultimately receive she was okay with it."

Spike chuckled softly under his breath. Xander was a lucky chap to have someone like Cordelia in his life. Helped to keep the man sane and stable, which was especially important with the kind of job they had. He only wished his married life was half as good as Xander’s when he finally tied the knot.

"What about Dru? How’d she take it?"

"Hav’nt told her yet." Spike mumbled, flicking away his cigarette butt onto the street beside them.

"You haven’t told her!?" Xander screamed, coming to a halt in the middle of the sidewalk to face his partner. "Are you mad? We’ll be leaving tomorrow and you still haven’t told her."

"There hasn’t been a right time," Spike defended. "She’s been so busy planning the wedding that I didn’t want to bother ‘er."

"Well, you better tell he… " Xander’s comment was stopped by a small body bumping into his.

"HEY!" he shouted when the person kept right on walking past without turning to apologize.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"How rude," Buffy sneered. "Don’t people know it’s a hazard to stop in the middle of the street like that. Walkways are for walking. Hello, any fool can figure that out."

"So, what is it you need to get?" Willow asked while munching on her breakfast bagel.

Buffy pulled her purse in front of her and started to sift through its contents. She cried out triumphantly when she produced the list her mother had given her.

"Lets see," she mumbled giving the list a once over before answering her friend. "Jeez, my mother must think I’m going to be gone a long time. This list is insane."

Willow glanced over at the list and caught sight of a few things that made her laugh.

"Economy sized box of tampons, shampoo, conditioner, four tubes of toothpaste!" Buffy said, shocked. "Does my mom think I’m buying for an Army?"

Willow giggled at her friend’s sarcastic tone. She noticed they were approaching "Family Mart" and tugged Buffy in the direction of the store.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Twenty minutes later Buffy was still in the store and her cart was not nearly filled with anything except one tube of toothpaste. The reason for her delay was because currently she was in the hair care aisle debating over the vast amounts of products available.

Buffy plucked two bottles off the shelf and turned to Willow. Willow had her nose buried in a Cosmo magazine, her elbows leaning against the handle of the shopping cart.

"Okay, between these two, which one?" Buffy asked displaying the bottle high enough for Willow to see.

Willow read the labels of each bottle and finally pointed to the one in Buffy’s right hand.

Buffy turned to bottle around to see which one Willow had picked. She scrunched her nose up at it.

"Why not Pantene?"

"Pantene doesn’t clean the hair, it only coats it until the stuff becomes cakey and your left with all this gunk," Willow explained her nose still buried in the magazine.

"Hmm. Well, I don’t want that."

Buffy replaced the Pantene on the shelf and threw the other bottle into the cart. She found the conditioner made by the same company and threw that in the cart as well.

"Three down, a hundred to go."

Willow sighed happily when she noticed Buffy moving to leave the aisle. She folded the magazine to keep her place and set it in the top part of the buggy. She then pushed the buggy and followed Buffy down the aisle.

They were about to round the corner when Buffy stopped. Willow saw her face light up and glanced in the direction Buffy was looking to see what had caught her attention.

"Oh no," Willow groaned when she saw what it was.

"I have to get body wash," Buffy said, picking up a bottle and twisting the cap off the smell its contents. "Now which scent do I want?"

Chapter 2

After two hours of shopping Buffy was now at CVS Pharmacy alone, Willow had gone home thirty minutes ago to get ready for a date with her boyfriend Oz, waiting for a prescription to be filled. She was holding a shopping crate in her hands and was busy gazing at the various pregnancy tests that lined the front shelf of the pharmaceutical counter. She was so caught up in what she was doing that she didn’t notice her boyfriend, Angel, as he came up behind her.

"Is there something you want to tell me?"

Buffy jumped slightly, jarred form her trance when she heard the familiar voice. She turned and smiled at him before playfully swatting him in the arm for scaring her.

"Angel don’t do that." she scolded, a light tone in her voice. "You know I’m on edge lately."

He laughed. "Sorry, babe. So, why do these tests seem so interesting to you?" he inquired, picking up an EPT box and reading its contents.

Buffy plucked the box from his hand and placed it back on the shelf. Without answering him she rolled her eyes and walked over to the pick-up window to check on her prescription. Angel followed.

"Hello, may I help you?" the assistant behind the counter asked when Buffy stepped over to it.

"Yes, I need to know if a prescription for Buffy Anne Summers is ready."

"Let me check for you."

Buffy watched the lady walk off and started to drum her fingers on top of the counter. She felt Angel standing beside her and looked over at him. He was staring at her intently, obviously still waiting for a reply to his question.

"Angel, don’t worry. None of your little soldiers made it past the battlefield."

She heard him sigh in relief.

"What’s with the heavy shopping?" he asked looking into her crate.

"Remember I’m going away for awhile and my mom insisted I stock up on unnecessary stuff."

Angel’s mouth formed into an ‘o’ as he recalled an earlier conversation with her about this whole FBI protection thing.

"You know where you’re going yet?"

Buffy shook her head. "I don’t. Besides, if I did I couldn’t tell you," she told him, leaning closer to whisper. "It’s a secret."

"Come on babe you can tell me." He urged, pinning her with a seductive gaze before adding. "If you do I can meet you there and we can have a little rendezvous without worrying about your father walking in on us."

Buffy bit her lower lip and moaned when he brushed her hair off her shoulder and planted a kiss against her neck.

"Angel," she groaned. "You’re not making this very easy for me."

He pulled back and looked down at her. A silly grin plastered on his face. "I know."

"Ms. Summers."

Buffy pushed Angel away and turned back to the counter. She had been so caught up in the feel of Angel’s lips on her skin that she hadn’t noticed the assistant’s return.

"Will this be all?" the assistant asked, scanning the bar code on the prescription.

Buffy hefted her crate onto the counter.

"Um, this stuff too."

Buffy busied herself with running her hands up and down Angel’s chest while her purchases were being rung up. She really didn’t want to leave him for… she didn’t even know how long, she just knew that being away from him was going to be torture on her.

"I’m going to miss you so much." she spoke to his chest, still running her hands over it.

Angel lifted her head up to look at him. He lowered his mouth onto hers and kissed her softly before pulling away.

"I know," he said, wrapping his arms around her waist to pull her closer to him.

"$54.60."

Buffy turned around in Angel’s arms to pay for her stuff. She pulled out her mother’s charge card and handed it to the assistant.

While Buffy waited for her card to be approved her mind drifted to what Angel had said. It disturbed her that he hadn’t told her he would miss her too, only that he knew she would miss him. Why didn’t he say it? Was he not going to miss her? Her thoughts soon dissipated when her bag and credit card were handed to her and she was told to have a good day.

Buffy felt Angel tug on her arm, leading her out of the store. Once outside she pulled a receipt out of the bag and shoved it into her purse along with the others. Her father insisted on knowing each and every thing she purchased just so she wasn’t spending his money on foolishly.

"What time should I be over tonight?" She heard Angel ask.

"Are you not going to walk me home?"

Angel glanced down at his feet.

"Uh, I have to be somewhere in five minutes," he mumbled, his reply sounding totally unconvincing. "Personal thing."

"Oh."

"What time?"

"My parents should be in bed by midnight, so how bout 2:00."

"Great," he said, leaning down to kiss her quickly on the lips. "See you at two."

Buffy smiled wearily as she watched her boyfriend jog away down the street, her thoughts momentarily returning to his statement inside CVS. She continued to watch him until he disappeared around a corner. Glancing at her watch Buffy decided she had time to make one short stop before heading home.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Spike pushed the door open to his apartment and extracted the keys from the lock. He made his way through the tiny living space that housed a single couch and an entertainment center. Upon entering the dining room he threw his briefcase onto the table and proceeded towards the kitchen where he could hear his fiancée talking on the phone.

"I wanted the seven layer cake with the white roses cascading down the side." He heard Dru tell someone over the line.

He pushed through the swinging door and saw her sitting at the breakfast nook, papers scattered out in front of her. He smiled when she looked up at him. His smile faded when she didn’t return it. He furrowed his brows and moved over to her. ‘What’s wrong?’ he implored with his eyes. He stopped beside her and leaned down to kiss her, hoping that would ease her frustrations over all the wedding arrangements.

"Not now Spike," she hissed, pushing him away roughly. "No, I said I wanted the white roses. Are you deaf?"

Spike stared at her wide-eyed. He then shook his head, clearing it of any thoughts that he had something to do with her anger, because he knew he didn’t. All day he had been away, so there was no way he had done anything to upset her.

Spike left the kitchen, leaving Dru alone to finish her conversation and deciding that later he would ask what had gotten her so upset.

He entered their room and pulled his jacket off his shoulders and draped it across the back of the chair near their bed. He then walked over to the dresser and carefully set his watch on it. While he was busy unbuttoning his shirt sleeves her heard Dru slam the phone down in the distance.

"No sex tonight," he mumbled under his breath as he took a seat on the edge of the bed. He had one shoe off when he felt Dru enter the room.

"Hey luv, what’s…"

"Why didn’t you tell me?"

He was about to question her when it dawned on him what she was upset about. It was his fault after all.

"Listen pet I was going to tell you but you’ve been so busy…."

"Busy?" Dru spat. "What kind of excuse is that? I’m your fiancée Spike, meaning I should be included in everything in your life that in turn effects mine."

Spike leaned forward on the bed, placing his elbows on his knees for support. He shoved both his hands through his hair until they came to rest on the back of his neck.

"Dru," he moaned. "You know I can’t include you in everything."

"I know that. You don’t think I don’t know that. I just want to be told when my fiancé is going to be going away."

"I know Dru. I’m sorry."

He lifted his head to look at her. She had her arms crossed tightly over her chest. Although he had apologized she still looked pretty pissed off.

They both stared at each other. Neither one moving or saying a word. It was so quite Spike knew he could hear a pin drop if it did.

Finally Dru moved. She stalked over to her side of the bed and lifted a suitcase off the floor. Spike’s jaw dropped when he saw it.

"Where are you going?" He asked, standing up.

"My parents," she told him without looking over at him. "I thought about spending this last night with you but…."

"Dru," he whispered stepping closer to her.

Dru moved away before he could touch her. "But, it would be to hard. Knowing…. knowing that tomorrow you’d be gone."

"Baby, don’t do this. I said I was sorry. Please stay," Spike said in an attempt to keep her there with him.

Dru made her way around him. She stopped in the doorway and turned to him.

"Be safe," she told him then vanished before he could stop her.

"I love you." Spike uttered just as he heard the front door close.

Chapter 3

“Unh!” Buffy cried out her ecstasy just before collapsing on top of her boyfriend’s chest. She slowly reached one hand up to her face to tuck her hair behind her ear, the thick strands quickly becoming annoying to her. She smiled into his chest when she heard the whispered comment escape his lips.

“Thanks,” she replied, lifting her head and resting her chin so she could look at him. His mouth was slightly ajar. She could hear quick intakes of air passing over his lips as he calmed down. “You weren’t so bad yourself.”

Angel flicked his eyes down at her before returning them to the ceiling overhead. He laughed hoarsely before saying, “Babe, you’re going to kill a man one day with the stuff you do.”

Buffy propped herself up on her elbows and regarded the man underneath her. She was happy that he seemed genuinely pleased with her performance, but something was off. He didn’t seem like he was really there. During their little roll he acted half interested in pleasing her, more like he was looking for a “wham-bam thank you maam” moment rather than their usual slow, touchy-feely sessions.

“Angel,” she started to say but stopped when she felt him pushing her over and off his body.

“What time is it?” he asked glancing over at her nightstand.

“You’re leaving?”

Buffy watched, her mouth hung open in shock, as Angel pulled his jeans up one leg then the other. Suddenly feeling like a cheap whore she pulled a blanket up to cover her chest, trying to hide the filth she felt from being exposed.

“Yeah, my ma got on my hide last time I came in so late,” he explained twirling around in one spot as he searched for his shirt. “I really don’t want that woman on my back.”

“So, she doesn’t mind you sneaking out late, but the whole coming back late is okay?” Buffy asked, demanding to understand why he had a sudden change in attitude.

“Buffy don’t start.”

Buffy sat up straight in bed, the sheet falling down to her waist when she did so.

“I’m not starting anything. I just want to know why you have to leave so early, its only…” she paused to glance at the clock. “Three o’clock.”

Angel, who was fully dressed now, walked over to sit on the edge of the bed. He angled his body so he was looking at her and placed a hand over hers, which lay flat against the mattress beside her thigh.

“It’s not only my ma, Buffy. You’re old man is so anal about your safety lately that I’m afraid he’s going to come barging through that door any moment. And, I really don’t want to worry about him blowing my balls off if you catch my drift.”

Buffy jerked her hand out from under his and scoffed at his remark. “God, you’re such a pig Angel,” she told him, crossing her arms over her chest to cover her nudity once again.

Angel leaned over and began to place soft kisses on her shoulder. “Thank you for tonight.”

That did it. Buffy saw red after that statement fell from his lips. Now not only did she feel like a two-bit whore, but him saying that gave the impression that she really was.

“Why don’t you just pay me and leave?” she barked, moving away from him and getting out of the bed. She found her robe lying on the floor and pulled it on.

“You know,” she said, clumsily tying her sash together. “You’ve been acting strange these last couple of weeks. I haven’t said anything because I know how you hate me to pry into your ‘personal’ affairs. But, now that you’ve ruined our last night together I just don’t care anymore.”

“Come one babe.”

“Get out Angel,” she told him before turning away. “Leave now or I will scream for my father and we’ll really see if he tries to blow your nuts off.”

She heard him sigh deep in his throat then heard his feet moving across the floor as he made his way to her balcony door. Her heart broke into a million pieces when she felt the air from outside blow by her, telling her that he was gone.


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Next Day:


“Rough night?” Xander asked Spike as they loaded their suitcases onto the private jet that would transport them to LA.

“Spent all night trying to talk to Dru. Didn’t get a wink o’ sleep.”

Xander arched a brow in curiosity. “You two have a fight or something?”

“Seems she found out about this little trip before I had the chance to tell her myself.” Spike explained, tossing a bag carelessly into the cargo space of the jets belly. “Then after not letting me explain things to her, I find out she planned to spend the night with her parents.”

“Gee, man. Tough luck.”

Spike shrugged his shoulders. “Tis all right. Maybe this little break will do us some good.” he tried to rationalize. “But, if this chit rubs me the wrong way … let’s just say I don’t feel like being hospitable today.”

“I hear that, I hear that.”


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


“Honey are you okay?” Joyce Summers asked her daughter as they waited for the guards to okay the aircraft she would be flying in. “Are you still mad that you have to leave?”

Buffy rolled her eyes. “No, mom. What’s taking so long? Why can’t I get on the plane yet?” She inquired, looking out the large floor to ceiling windows towards the runway where she could see her father yelling at a man.

“They’re just checking things Elizabeth. Have patience.” She advised tenderly, placing her arm around Buffy’s shoulders.

Buffy shoved her mother’s arm off of her and moved away. “Call me when they finally get this crap in motion. I’ll be in the restroom fixing my hair.”


~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Buffy managed to shove her way through the busy summer vacation crowd into the bathroom. Once inside she found an empty stale and walked into it. She closed and locked the door behind her before leaning against one of the walls. Silently she started to cry to herself. Tears rolled down her cheeks and under her chin.

Last night after Angel had left she had called Willow up crying. She told her friend everything that had happened and asked her opinion of the situation. Willow had told her that she didn’t know what to think, only that maybe a break would be good for them both right now. Her comment only made Buffy cry more. As a result Buffy had cried herself to sleep last night, broken-hearted over the thought of never speaking to Angel again.

Today she felt better, that is until her mother stuck her nose where it didn’t belong. She had been all gung-ho about leaving and getting away from Sunnyhell until her mother asked if something was wrong. That only brought on memories of last night and what had occurred with Angel.

Buffy pulled some tissue off the toilet roll and used it to dab her eyes. She felt like such a baby, crying over something so insane. It was obvious Angel had lost interest in her. Which was not understandable since they had only been dating a little over a year. She really thought he was the one. Once they had passed the six month mark, which is when most relationships die, she knew theirs was special.

What a fool she had been.

“Elizabeth the plane is ready.” She heard her mother voice echo through the restroom. “Come out so your father and I can say good-bye.”

Buffy laughed to herself as she left the stall, all the while thinking, “I’m about to enter hell.”


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


“Remember your manners. And, be polite to the servants on the plane. And, don’t forget to take your ..”

“Joyce will you stop nagging. Our daughter is going to be fine.” Hank said, pulling his wife’s hands from around Buffy.

“This is so embarrassing,” Buffy mumbled under her breath as her father pulled her mother free of hugging her.

“Elizabeth,” Hank said, stepping up to his daughter. “I want you to promise me something. If those men guarding you take advantage of you in any way you call me.” He said, his mind drifting to the other day and memory of the two men who would be guarding her.

“Daddy!” Buffy said, shocked. “They're old men.”

“Just promise me. I don’t care what those bastards say about contacting me. You call me if they lay one hand on you.”

“Hank you’re scaring her,” Joyce spoke up, noticing the appalled look on Buffy’s face.

“Joyce,” Hank reprimanded. “Elizabeth.”

“I promise.”

“All right,” Hank breathed in relief. “Now go on. They’re waiting for you.”

Buffy smiled at her parents. ‘At least I’m getting away from these two,’ she thought to herself as she backed away from them toward the plane.

“Love you, mom.”

“I love you, Elizabeth. Be careful.”

Buffy waved one final time to her parents then boarded the plane.

Chapter 4:


"So, we're meeting this Elizabeth Summers in LA?"

"Yeah, her flight from Sunnydale should be coming in about fifteen minutes after ours."

Spike exhaled noisily as he slouched back in his seat. He eyed the papers strewn across the table that separated him, Xander and Rose, one of several other agents that were currently on the plane. His eyes were sore from going over the dossier that had hurriedly put together on one Miss Elizabeth “Buffy” Anne Summers and he didn't feel like looking at it anymore.

"Whose idea was it to make three connecting flights in one day?" he asked rubbing his eyes with the palms of his hand.

"Oh, is Spikey tired already?" Rose cooed jokingly. "Does Lady Rose need to give you a back rub?"

Spike leered at her seductively. "Better watch it," he warned. "I just might take you up on that offer."

Rose laughed then went back to work scanning the files into a database for the FBI. She was so engrossed in her work that she missed the glances being exchanged between Spike and Xander.

Spike mouthed 'What?' to Xander, wondering why he was looking at him like a scolding father. Xander only shook his head and stood up from his seat.

"Uh, I'm going to get some coffee," he told them. "Do you guys want anything?"

Rose looked up from her laptop, pushing up her glasses that had slid down her nose some.

"Yeah, get me a coffee. Cream..."

"Cream, no sugar." Spike finished for her.

Rose flashed him with a smile and nodded her head. "You know me so well."

Spike smiled back and then looked up at Xander. "I'll have some coffee. Black."

When Xander was gone Spike got up from his own seat and took the one vacated next to Rose. He looked over her shoulder and started to read what she was typing.

"You know I hate when you do that," Rose scolded lightly, elbowing him in the stomach.

Spike laughed and sat back in the seat. He picked up a piece of paper and pretended to look over it.

"You sure you don't want to take my place?" he asked letting the paper fall from his hands and float back onto the table. "Be really fun. Get to enjoy time away from the Bureau. Free vacation."

Rose tilted her head to the side and gave him a look that said she wasn't falling for his crap.

"Oh, I don't think I should take this one. You seem so overly excited about it and it would just be wrong of me to take it from you."

"Eh, was worth a shot."

Xander came strolling back down the aisle towards them, two coffee mugs held in his hands. He set them both down on the table and then turned to go back to get one of his own.

Spike handed Rose her mug then picked up his and took a sip. As he lowered the cup from his lips, he sighed in satisfaction. As he brought the mug up for a second sip he heard the intercom click on.

"Ladies and gentlemen we will be landing shortly in LA. Please return to your seats and buckle up as we prepare for landing."

Spike groaned nosily as he sat up in his seat and buckled up. ‘Let the fun begin,’ he thought to himself as he watched Xander walk down the aisle to take his seat. ‘Hell is just around the corner.’


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Xander and Spike stood in the receiving area, watching as passengers debarked from the plane from Sunnydale which had just landed on the runway.

They studied each passenger as they exited the plane and walked down the steps, before disappearing into the terminal. Finally two well-dressed men came out and they knew that Elizabeth Summers had to be right behind them.

Spike flicked away the cigarette he’d been smoking and stood up straighter. He had left his sunglasses on the jet so the glare from the plane was making it hard for him to see clearly. He lifted a hand up to his forehead, shielding the sun from his eyes.

"That must be her." He heard Xander say beside him. He looked up at the top of the stairs and saw a girl about nineteen years of age walking through the doors behind the two men. He had to squint his eyes to see her better, and nearly choked when he saw what she looked like.

She was hideous. Usually he didn't think any woman was ugly, but this one took the cake. Her greasy, long brown hair hung low and limp about her face. The loose fitting clothes she wore had the effect of making her already scrawny body look even scrawnier, if possible. He was about to comment to Xander that it was no wonder the father wanted to put her in hiding, when the girl tripped slightly and sent her bag falling down the steps. This made him laugh out loud.

"God help us…" Xander whispered as he watched the incident.

This made Spike laugh even harder. "Why were we picked for this assignment again?" he asked, once his laughter had died down slightly.

"I think Walters put it like this," Xander began to explain, referring to their boss. "You are the best of the best at what you do. No other men are fit for this assignment."

"You sure we didn't do something to piss him off?" Spike asked, watching as the two men helped the girl repack her bag. "And that this," he said gesturing to the scene before them, "is the punishment?"

Spike heard Xander start to rattle on about responsibility next to him. Shaking his head at the girl with the greasy hair, he turned his gaze back to people continuing to exit the plane. If he looked at her any longer, he knew he’d start laughing again. His gaze drifted up the stairs and what he saw made his throat clinch. Two perfect feet in-cased in a pair of platform sandals were coming down the stairs one at a time. He let his eyes travel upwards and saw that the perfect feet joined two perfect ankles, which joined to two perfectly tanned and well-toned legs. Next his eyes caught sight of the perfect torso that the two perfect legs carried. The perfect body wore a form fitting white sundress, which showed off all the perfect curves lying underneath the thin fabric. Finally he reached her head. Soft, shiny golden hair flowed over her shoulders, coming to rest on the hint of bosom that peeked out from the neckline of her dress. Her face was hidden from his view, as the girl was currently looking at the two men helping the greasy-haired girl with her bag. He kept his eyes locked on her, hoping that he would get a peak at the beauty that was hidden beneath that lush hair. As luck would have it the perfect girl tossed her head slightly, causing her hair to flip behind her shoulder. Yes, she was definitely…

"Perfect…" he uttered, not realizing that he’d said it aloud.

"What?" Xander questioned next to him.

Xander saw that Spike's gaze was no longer fixed on the clumsy girl, but instead was staring at something else. He followed his eye line until he too saw the beauty waiting at the bottom of the stairs.

"Wow."

Spike nodded his head in agreement. He found himself wishing that she were the Elizabeth Summers to be guarded. He really wouldn't mind guarding that body for a long period of time.

"Come on," Xander said finally breaking out of his stupor. "Let's go help Ms. Summers with her bag."

"Yeah," Spike said still transfixed by the girl and her beauty.

Xander and Spike made their way to the greasy-haired girl and knelt down to help her pick up the remainder of her stuff. When they had everything securely in its place, they stood to greet her.

"Hi, Miss. Summers. Did you enjoy your flight?" Xander asked, sticking his hand out.

The girl furrowed her brows at him and looked down at his extended hand. She clutched her bag tight to her chest and started to move away. She quickly thanked the two men from the plane for their help, and then fled towards the airport.

Spike and Xander looked from her, to each other, then back to the girl running away from them. Both were confused as to why she had run off. Did she not know that she was to come with them?

"Ahem." They heard a gentle clearing of the throat and turned their gazes at the same time to the direction it which it had originated. There in front of them, stood the beauty they had been mesmerized by previously.

"I believe I'm the girl you're looking for," she said. "Elizabeth Summers...?"

"Oh," Xander said, his mouth frowning as he looked at her, then in the direction the other girl had taken. "We thought she was…"

"Yes, I know," she said her voice full of irritation. "I was sure you guys would have at least known what I looked like. Don‘t you have a picture of me?"

Xander scratched his head, looking everywhere but at her. "Um…maybe we should have gotten one."

Spike knew Xander was embarrassed from their mistake, and so was he, but he wasn't about to show it. Instead he plastered a huge smile on his face and introduced himself.

"I'm Special Agent William Hawthorne; this is Special Agent Alexander Harris. We've been assigned to guard you."

Buffy had been so annoyed that they’d assumed she was some clumsy waif; she hadn't really gotten a good look at the second man. When she did finally get a good look at him, she wondered how she hadn't noticed him first. She felt her whole body react as her hazel eyes met with his sapphire ones. Her anger dissolved as she stared at him, taking in the features of his face.

The well-defined cheek bones that were more pronounced when he smiled. The full lips that seemed to move in slow motion as he spoke to her, just begging to be kissed. And, the hair. She’d never seen anyone who could pull off bleached hair as well as he did, with his dark eyebrows in stark contrast.

"You're not old men," she replied almost meekly, taking his hand in hers. The heat that passed through her as their skin touched made her entire body want to shiver.

The handsome agent she was so enthralled by choked back a laugh at her remark. The other less then handsome -but certainly not unattractive- agent joined him in his laughter. They both held up their hands to their mouths to stifle the remainder of their chuckles.

Finally the handsome agent spoke, "We certainly hope not."

Buffy felt herself blush with embarrassment. She couldn't believe how lame she was! She just knew they must think she was the biggest ditz in the world.

Xander once again attempted to apologize about the mistaken identity. "I'm sorry again about the whole thinking that girl was you." His words died on his lips, feeling that he was only burying himself even deeper into a hole.

Spike spoke up to defend his partner. "We assumed she was you because these two men were in front of her when she came off the plane. Then, with the falling bag and helping her…well, it was a natural assumption." He ended his sentence and looked at the two burly men which still loomed nearby. He narrowed his eyes when he realized that they weren't of the FBI's own. "Who are the men anyway?"

Buffy answered for them. "They’re from my father's own security team. He insisted on having two of his own come with me, to make sure I made it safely."

Spike sneered at that. Leave it to daddy dearest to do something stupid like that. He was about to comment on how he felt about her father doing something that dim-witted but was interrupted by Xander instead.

"I am so glad we are rid of that man and his interfering ways. Did he not realize how dangerous it is to send his daughter off with two men we had no connection with? I mean we weren't even informed about this little change in plans." Xander finished his statement with a glance towards Spike to see if he agreed with him. All he saw was Spike shaking his head slowly as he peered off into the distance. Thats when it dawned on him everything he had just said. He glanced at Buffy, his eyes full of remorse as he tried to cover his actions.

"Not that it wasn't full of good intention," he clarified. "I'm sure your father was only concerned about your safety and felt he was doing the right thing."

Spike cleared his throat loudly, grabbing Buffy's attention away from the rambling Xander.

"Why don't we discuss this on the jet?" Spike recommended, stepping aside to show Elizabeth the way. "I'm sure Ms. Summers would like to relax and freshen up before we head out again."

Buffy smiled at William as she passed him. During the walk to the jet, she decided maybe this wouldn't be such a bad thing after all. Spending time with two handsome agents, with no one around to bother her or yell at her over her actions, was certainly worth taking advantage of.

Spike couldn't help but smirk at the petite body that walked in front of him. His eyes instantly fell to her backside as soon as she appeared in front of him and there they stayed as they waltzed up the steps to the jet. His eyes followed the movement of the dress as it swished about her legs each time her hips moved as she took a step. This was definitely turning into a not so bad assignment after all.

Chapter 5:

Rated: NC17(overall)


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Let me get your bags for you." Buffy heard someone say as her bag was taken from her grip.

As soon as she had boarded the jet it seemed that everyone was hell bent on making sure she was comfortable. Also to her surprise not every male on the jet was old. They all looked to be about in their mid-thirties and very handsome to boot. This was going to be one hell of a ride her conscious cheered in her head.

At least that's what she thought until her eyes made contact with the only other female on the jet. There behind all the men surrounding her was a lady with long auburn hair, her arms crossed, staring at her coldly. Buffy self-consciously looked down at her body, thinking that maybe what she was wearing was inappropriate around men who might be married. But one sweep of her dress concluded to her that that couldn't be it. It was long in its length, reaching just past her knees. The neckline wasn't bad either, running flat across her chest, revealing the right amount of skin. She was no fashion expert, but to her she looked exceptionally well dressed. Lifting her head up, Buffy jutted her chin out defiantly, her confidence coming to the forth. If the lady wanted to give her cold looks the whole trip that was fine with her. She had faced similar circumstances before when out with Angel and one of his ex's happened to be there.

Buffy was pulled out of her thoughts from the feel of one manly hand taking her by the elbow. She looked up and met the deep cobalt eyes of Agent Hawthorne. Her breath instantly caught in her throat.

"Why don't you take a seat an' buckle in," he told her while leading her past the men and down the aisle towards some seats. "Once your other luggage arrives we'll be takin' off."

Buffy nodded her head and took a seat near the rear of the jet. Once seated and Agent Hawthorne was gone, she removed the cardigan she had been wearing. For some reason her body felt very flushed and hot despite the air blowing throughout the cabin. Her hands reached beside her to find the ends of a buckle and pull it around to the front of her waist. She fastened then laid her head back against the seat, deciding to relax until the jet was up in the air and she could move around again.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Spike went to the front of the jet to talk with the pilot. AS he was about to reach the door to the cockpit her heard a gently coughing. He turned his head in the direction it came from and saw Rose smirking at him. Sighing heavily he went over to her.

"What is it now?"

Rose's smile only grew as she heard the annoyed sound in his voice. "So, do you still want me to take over this assignment for you?"

Spike tilted his head and regarded her with a sneer. "What are you trying to imply Rose? That just because Miss Elizabeth happens to be a young curvaceous woman I might like guardin' her." His eyes held a glint of humor in them as his mouth hung open in mock horror. "Rose I am an engaged man. Such thoughts should not even enter my mind."

Rose rolled her eyes at him to which Spike laughed. He loved poking fun with her, but sometimes she took things a little to far. Thinking that he was enthralled by the beauty of Elizabeth, okay he was, but that was beside the point. As his long time friend, and the fact that they practically grew up together, Rose should know that he remained loyal in every sense of the word.

"I'm just suggesting," she said, drawling out the last word to its full potential. "That you should be careful around this one. There's something about her that rubs me the wrong way. That and the fact that blondes are your type."

"Blondes are not my type," Spike argued. "Dru isn't a blonde."

"I know Dru isn't a blonde. I am the one that set you two up. Remember?"

Spike smiled at her, remembering back to when he first laid eyes on Dru. Rose was right, most of his life he had dated blondes. Be it dirty, ash, mousy, light, dark, or medium, blondes were definitely his preference. But, once he had laid eyes on Dru he seriously reconsidered his whole thought process on blondes being the pick of the bunch. Everything about her was dark. From her hair to her eyes, even to the deepest secrets she had held about herself during their first week of dating. She was a true mystery that he couldn't wait to solve. Maybe that is why he was so infatuated by her. But, that didn't matter now because she was his and would always be his dark princess until the day he died.

Spike broke free of his thoughts to wrap an arm around Rose's shoulders. "Listen, pet. I don't think you have anythin' to fret about. Even though I appreciate the sisterly protection act you have goin' on right now. I'm a grown boy an' I can take care of myself," he consoled then added with an arch of his brow. "Beside I don't think our lovely Miss Elizabeth is a natural blonde."

Rose slapped him in the chest playfully. "Well, let's keep that conclusion without you having to investigate any further."

"Oh, lovey. Such naughty thoughts."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Buffy opened her eyes and groaned under her breath. She had intended to get a little shut eye, but the occupants of the jet were currently making that very hard for her with all their moving around.

"Aren't people supposed to remain seated before taking off?" she mumbled, pushing herself into an upright position.

"Sorry, luv. What was that?" A sexy British voice called out from beside her.

Buffy's head snapped to the side and saw Agent Hawthorne along with Agent Harris and the death stare lady sitting next to her around a small table. She glanced out the window to her other side and noticed blue sky and the faintest of clouds passing by. They were already in the air.

"You fell asleep before we took off. We would've woken you up but you really look like you needed the rest," Agent Harris explained when he saw her confused look. "Had a rough night last night, huh?"

"Yeah," Buffy replied in a whisper, her mind drifting to the night before and how she had spent most of it crying over Angel. "Really rough night."

Spike scrunched his brows and said, "Do you want to talk about it?"

Buffy shook her head. "No. It's nothing, just guy problems." Immediately her eyes flew open wider. Why was she being so open towards these people she hardly knew. Okay she wasn't really being open, but she wouldn't have even told her own mother that she was having guy problems.

Spike felt himself tense at the mention of 'guy problems'. So, blonde beauty had a boyfriend. Not really a shocker, but since it wasn't included in the files about her it did come as a surprise. The question now was why did it seem to bother him so much. Maybe it just brought to mind his own problems with his relationship. Yeah, that was it. That's all this feeling in the pit of his stomach was about, just fear about his own problems, nothing more.

"What are you guys working on?" Buffy asked, getting up from her seat and leaning over Spike's shoulder to see.

Spike did not like the new feeling that formed in his stomach from the closeness of her body to his. He also didn't like the looks he was receiving from Rose out of the corner of his eye. Quickly he motioned to the seat across from him.

"Do you want to sit down?"

Xander reached over to the seat beside him and hurriedly started to clear it free of papers. "Here all nice and clear for you."

Buffy thanked him and plopped down into the seat less than gracefully. She noticed death stare lady looking at her and rolled her eyes discreetly.

"Hi," Rose greeted taking her glasses off. "We haven't been introduced yet, no thanks to these two gentlemen," she teased looking between Xander and Spike. "I'm Agent Rose Armes."

Buffy shook Rose's hand reluctantly then hastily pulled her arm away. Ignoring the look she received for her rude action she turned her attention to the paper situated across the table.

"What is this?"

Xander was the first to reply. "This is a layout of the cabin we'll be staying in."

"Cabin," Buffy cried in disgust. "We're staying in a cabin? And, just when I thought things couldn't get any worse."

Xander looked to Spike for help. For some reason he found it very hard to maintain a level head around this girl. Usually he was able to remain calm when the time called for it, but right now he didn't know what to do. His eyes implored Spike to help bail him out of starting something from Elizabeth.

Spike cleared his throat and leaned forward in his chair, his arms coming to rest on the table. "Yes we are stayin' in a cabin. A secluded cabin near a lake. It was the best place we could find where we were sure no one would bother you."

"Why does it have to be secluded? I mean why can't I stay at a lush hotel on the coast with lots of tourists for me to blend in with."

"Cause, if you are able to blend in with local tourists don't you think these so called terrorists will be able to blend in as well." Rose answered for Spike.

"Why are you talking to me like that?" Buffy asked Rose when she finished talking. "I am old enough to understand what you are saying without you relaying it to me like I'm some ignorant child."

"Elizabeth," Xander spoke up. "Rose is not trying to be rude nor is she trying to imply that you're a child. But…."

"Buffy."

"Excuse me?"

"Please call me Buffy. Only my parents call me Elizabeth," Buffy explained before glaring over at Rose. "And as for Agent Armes not thinking that I'm a child, well I don't believe that's true. She's been looking at me like I was the plague ever since I got on this jet. Why is that?"

"I don't have to explain myself to you, Buffy."

Buffy got up from her seat. "I don't need this right now," she told them still looking at Rose. "Where can I get a glass of water?"

"Down the aisle through that door is a mini kitchen," Spike answered pointing with his finger behind him.

Buffy turned on her heel and stalked away towards the back. When she was gone Rose scoffed loudly.

"Boy, are you guys going to have your hands full with that one," she commented, returning her glasses to her nose. "Gets all wound up over nothing."

"Like you're making it any easier for us," Xander spat, after remaining silent for so long. "Why the hell did you talk to her like that?"

Rose lifted her gaze to him. "Don't start with me Harris."

"Please don't start either of you," Spike implored, rubbing his temple with two fingers. "Didn't you guys fight enough at the academy?"

Rose sighed heavily before going back to work on her computer. Xander returned to his work of assessing the layout of the cabin and the best possible places to hide surveillance cameras. Spike however found himself glancing around his seat down the aisle where Buffy had retreated. Putting his pen down he got up from his seat and started down the aisle to find her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Buffy heard someone coming towards the kitchen and quickly wiped her face clean of the tears she had shed. She then turned towards the cabinets and started her search for a cup.

"Are you okay?" Spike asked, watching her search.

Buffy stood up and opened a cabinet overhead. "Why would there be anything wrong with me?"

"Listen about Rose," Spike spoke, walking further into the kitchen until he was directly behind her. "She doesn't mean what she says. It's just in her nature to get all defensive when other women are around. Especially since she's so used to being around men day in and day out."

"Hmm, she must have a lot of friends then," Buffy remarked sarcastically.

"Actually come to think of it Xander and I are her only friends," he mumbled quietly. "And Dru."

"See," Buffy declared triumphantly. "Miss Lonely Heart feels the need to put other's down just because she's miserable."

"That's not true," Spike defended quickly, knowing all to well what might be the cause of Rose's attitude. He was sure it had to do with her feeling obligated as a friend to protect Dru's things.

"Argh!" Buffy grunted, spinning around to face Spike and lean against the counter. "I can't find one damn cup."

Spike moved closer to her and reached over her to open a cabinet. "There right up here, luv."

Suddenly the jet jerked sending Spike forward towards Buffy. Spike instinctively reached out his free hand to find something to stop his falling form. Buffy clutched at the counter, using it as leverage to keep her from flying to the ground.

"Sorry about that folks," the pilots voice came on over the intercom. "Just hit a little turbulence."

Spike exhaled, his eyes glued to the intercom as he finished listening to the pilot speak. He heard a tiny gasp and turned his attention back to in front of him. He saw Buffy standing mere inches from him, her head hung. His eyes glanced downwards to see what she was gasping about and he nearly froze when he saw it. There it was, his hand resting completely around one of her breasts. Her breast had been the thing he had grabbed hold of to keep his balance.

Buffy stared fixated at the hand holding her breast firmly in its grip. She gasped again when she felt the fingers gently squeeze her. Her head shot up to look at Spike.

Spike yanked his hand away when he realized that he had unknowingly squeezed her soft globe. He met her shocked gaze and stepped back away from her.

"Why don't you go back to your seat and I'll get that glass of water for you," he suggested, still avoiding looking at her.

Buffy nodded her head numbly. "Okay."

When she had walked through the door, leaving him alone in the small kitchen, Spike braced himself on the counter and cursed. What in the hell had come over him? Why did he do that?

Chapter 6:

AN: Thanks to Flames and her beta job!!

~~~~~~~~~~~

Spike slowly walked down the aisle, a glass of water clutched firmly in his hand. He had spent several minutes in the kitchen after getting the water trying to calm himself from the incident with Buffy earlier. He knew he shouldn't be bothered so much about it, but the fact that he had done much more than accidentally grab a hold of her breast was what upset him the most.

’Just don't let it bother you,’ he told himself, as his gaze landed on the girl who was currently consuming his thoughts. ‘Have a job to do. Must remain professional.’

"’ere you go," Spike said, setting the glass in front of Buffy. "Nice cold, glass o’ water for you."

Buffy jumped slightly when she heard Spike’s voice and the glass that was being placed in front of her. She silently thanked him before lifting the glass to her lips and taking a sip. She didn’t look up when he took his seat across from her, instead turned her attention back to the layout of the cabin that Agent Harris was still looking over.

"Which room is mine?" she asked, shifting her weight on the seat to get a better look.

Xander waved his hand over the area of the blueprint. "Pick one."

Buffy blushed, embarrassed by the fact that she didn’t understand exactly what she was looking at. TO her it looked like a bunch of numbers and lines that formed boxes of various sizes.

"Um...I’ll pick this one," she said, pointing to a big box in the center of the layout.

Buffy’s head shot up when she heard the two people sitting on the other side of the table laugh. She narrowed her eyes at Spike before turning a cold gaze to Rose.

"Honey, that’s the kitchen." Rose informed her, still laughing.

Buffy scoffed and rolled her eyes. "I know that. I was just joking," she told them, her voice laced with venom. "Can’t the FBI take a joke?"

Spike stopped his laughing at her remark. He hadn’t meant to offend her. He thought it was cute how she had picked out the kitchen as her room. It told him that despite the rebellious air she surrounded herself with; she was still an innocent- a virgin to the real world in every sense of the word. Guarded and protected her whole life by her mother’s love and her father’s wealth. She still had a lot to learn.

"What are you staring at?" Spike heard Rose whisper into his ear.

Spike snapped out of his daze and tore his eyes away from Buffy to look at Rose who was leaning in close. He sighed heavily when he saw the knowing look in her gaze.

"Rose don’t start with me," he gritted out through his clenched teeth. "I ‘ave a lot on my mind right now."

Rose smiled slyly and leaned in closer still. "Oh I don’t doubt that. Judging from the way you were looking at Miss Summers over there, I’d say you have every inch of her embedded in your mind right now."

Before Spike could say anything, Rose had pulled back and went right back to her typing. Knowing that there was no use in arguing with her, he simply shook his head and spent the remainder of the flight helping Xander with the cabin security.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After landing in Washington D.C and transferring to a much smaller jet, -one that seated about ten people, tops- Buffy and her guards were on their way to the cabin, riding in a black 4x4, complete with tinted windows.

”˜Boy, this will really make us look discrete…” Buffy thought to herself, when she first laid eyes on the SUV.

Now as they drove towards the cabin, Buffy leaned back in her seat and watched the trees that seemed to zoom by. It was finally hitting her- the reality of the whole situation. For some reason during the flight from L.A. to D.C. she’d still been able to think of this as some horrible dream. That at any moment she would wake up, and be safe in her warm bed at home. But this wasn’t a dream. If the luggage in the rear of the SUV wasn’t proof, then the appearance of the cabin certainly was.

"Here we are, home sweet home," Xander sang in a not so cheerful voice as he killed the engine and put the car into park. "Let’s unload the luggage so we can eat. I don’t know about you guys but I’m starving."

Spike unbuckled his belt and opened his car door. He walked to Buffy’s door and was just about to open it when it swung open and almost hit him. He stumbled back and stared at the petite girl as she hopped out of the car and made her way towards the cabin.

"Where does she think she’s going?" Spike heard Xander ask beside him.

Spike shook his head. "I don’t know," he answered. "Come on, let’s get this luggage out."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Buffy was returning from her exploration of the kitchen when she heard the front door open. She saw Spike and Xander enter, their arms loaded down with bags. When she noticed that none of the bags were her own she frowned.

"Where’s my stuff?"

Xander groaned loudly then mumbled something about women before disappearing, leaving Spike and Buffy alone in the den.

"Listen Buffy." Spike started to speak, letting the bags drop to the floor. "I don’t know how things are run back at Casa de la Summers, but since we’re hundreds of thousands of miles away from Sunnydale, don’t expect t’be waited on. We may be here to guard you, but we are not here to serve you."

"You don’t have to be so rude about it. If you wanted me to get my own stuff, all you had to do was say so." Buffy told him, flipping her hair back and pushing past him to walk out the door.

Before she was even half way past him something scurrying across the floor caught the corner of her eye. Panic soared through her body as she attempted to leap up onto a wooden chair set against a wall. She miscalculated her footing, as well as the distance of the chair, and ended up losing her balance. She let out a startled yelp as she felt herself being caught around the waist by two broad arms. Instinct took over her body as her arms wound themselves around the neck of the man who would protect her from whatever was running loose in the cabin.

"What was that?" Buffy asked, her eyes frantically searching every corner of the room and the area around her feet, her mind oblivious to how closely she was pressing herself against Spike’s side.

Spike groaned deep in his throat. He tightened his grip around her, hoping to still the lithe body that was squirming against him, causing not so good thoughts to make their way to his second brain.

"Probably just a mouse, luv," he answered as causally as he could. "Nothin’ ta fret about."

Buffy’s eyes grew at the sound of the word mouse. Just when she really thought things couldn’t get any worse, she finds out she might be living with a furry, little rodent! A rodent that would most likely crawl all over her while she slept or maybe pay her a visit while she was in the shower, all naked and her skin vulnerable to the diseases it may carry.

"Nothing to fret about? How can you say that? It’s…it’s a mouse!"

"Buffy, there is nothing to worry about. For all we know, you probably scared th’ little critter away," Spike told her. "Now will you let go of my neck. You’re startin’ ta choke me!"

Buffy shook her head violently. "No, I can’t move. That thing might still be around."

"Buffy," Spike said while pulling her arms from around his neck. He gripped her upper arms and held her away from him. Maybe she didn’t need the distance, but he sure as hell did. If her body stayed pressed against his for any longer, he didn’t know what he would’ve done. But, it wouldn’t have been pretty. "Go outside an’ get your bags. I’ll see if I can find th’ mouse and get rid o’ it," he told her, leading her towards the door and opening it for her. "I’ll call you when it’s gone, okay?"

"Alright."

When the door was closed and Buffy was gone, Spike sighed in relief. Not even twenty-four hours had passed since he first laid eyes on her and already she was affecting him. Sure some of the time her attitude could be down right irritating, but other times she made his blood boil...in a most pleasant way.

Shaking himself free of his thoughts Spike turned his attention to the floor. He had a mouse to find. A mouse that caused his current situation with Miss Elizabeth Summers to get even stickier than it already was.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Buffy had forgone the idea of retrieving her bags, and instead decided to explore the area around the cabin and along the lake. To her surprise when she had rounded the corner of the house, she had discovered a very posh looking patio complete with a Jacuzzi in one corner. It seemed very unusual for a cabin to have a Jacuzzi, but maybe the ex-tenants preferred a nice warm water hole instead of the cold, mucky one behind their house. Maybe they used it while entertaining house guests or maybe it was used during patio parties. She didn’t really care one way or the other. It was there and now she was going to be the one to enjoy it.

Connected to the patio was a set of stairs that lead down to the lake and a pier that was void of a boat. A brief frown set across her lips before she nonchalantly shrugged her shoulders and proceeded down the steps one at a time. When she reached the bottom of the steps she sat down and started to take her shoes off. Shoes off and dangling in her hands she jumped off the pier onto the sandy shore of the lake. The shore surrounding the lake wasn’t big, maybe several feet before it turned into rocks and grass.

Buffy slowly walked along the shore, her head hanging down to look at the sand beneath her feet. Occasionally something would catch her eye and she would stop and bend down to see what it was. Usually it turned out to be a penny or some broken glass. After discovering the broken glass Buffy decided that wearing her shoes might be a good idea.

While sitting on log she found -probably used during a campfire- Buffy noticed the faintest sound of a motor in the distance. She glanced up from her task of pulling on her shoes to search for the source of the noise. To say she was shocked by what she saw would be an understatement. Thrilled would be a better word to describe how her feelings as a boat sped across the lake. It was too far away for her to make out any living forms on the craft, but she knew that in order for a boat to be moving, a person had to be driving it. And that meant the so called lake the FBI claimed was secluded actually wasn’t.

Buffy hurriedly put her shoes on and rose to her feet. She glanced behind her towards the cabin Spike and Xander were in. She knew she shouldn’t be walking off like she was, but there was a person out there. A person waiting to be talked to. A person that wasn't part of the FBI, which right now, really appealed to her. Glancing back towards the boat she saw it start to slow and glide smoothly through the water like it was coming to a stop.

‘No, don’t stop,’ Buffy’s brain cried out. ‘Pull up to shore. Bring the boat to shore so I can meet you.’

Buffy exhaled softly when the boat slowly made its way closer to shore. She looked up to the heavens and silently thanked whatever higher being was looking down on her to bring her such luck.

When she was able to pinpoint how far the boat might be and gauge a location, she started off on a light jog down the shore towards it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After jogging for what seemed like a really long time, Buffy finally saw the boat from the lake floating next to a dock. She quickly became disappointed when she saw no one on the boat. Had she missed them? Where could they have gone? Maybe there was a cabin nearby- surely the boat belonged to someone who lived on the lake. Her gaze moved along the dock until it disappeared into the trees. She continued to walk until she was able to see up through the trees and discovered a cabin buried deep within. Because it was hidden so well, she hadn’t been able to see it from her side of the lake.

Her gaze snapped back towards the boat when she heard a male voice. A male figure had emerged from below and was now hopping off the boat onto the dock, a rope held in his hand. His back was turned to her as he tied the boat to the dock. He still hadn’t noticed Buffy as he rose to his feet and jumped back onto the boat.

Buffy silently made her way to the edge of the dock. She stepped up onto the wooden boards and cringed when they creaked beneath her weight.

"Who’s there?" the male on the boat asked, his head snapping up to look around. His eyes feel on Buffy, who stood frozen in her spot on the dock. "Hello there."

Buffy suddenly became very aware of how vulnerable a position she had put herself in by being here alone with a man she didn’t even know. God, she could be really stupid sometimes.

"Can you talk?" The male voice asked, bringing Buffy out of her fear induced trance.

"Um," Buffy managed to get out before silence hit her again.

"How about I make this easier for you," the male suggested, moving around the boat until he stood by the side closest to the dock.

Buffy tensed up as he pulled himself out of the boat to stand on the dock. He must have seen her body tighten because instead of moving towards her, he stayed where he was.

"I just want to introduce myself," the man said before making his way a little closer. When he was close enough to reach out and touch her, and she hadn’t made a move to back away, he held out his hand towards her.

"Name's Riley Finn."

TBC............

Chapter 7

Rated: NC17

Thank you Chloe aka Flames. For being a wonderful beta girl!!!!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Spike came bursting through the front door of the cabin, his breath coming in sharp gasps. He spotted Xander coming out from one of the rooms and made his way over to him.

"Hey, have you seen Buffy?" he asked, halting Xander with a hand on the shoulder. "She was supposed to be out front waiting for me to get her, but she’s not there."

Xander shook his head and frowned. "I haven’t seen her. Did you check out back?"

Spike eyes lit up. Of course! The backyard! He hadn’t thought to check the backyard! Here he was, getting all worried when she could have been in the backyard the entire time. He hurriedly ran out the backdoor.

"Only five minutes into this assignment, and we’ve already lost the girl…" Xander commented sarcastically, following Spike out the door. "But, do you honestly think something could have-"

His voice trailed off as he stepped around Spike and saw for the first time exactly how big the lake actually was. During the drive up, the only thing visible had been trees, trees and more trees. Not once had they gotten a clear view of the lake. But now, seeing it for the first time, it became obvious that maybe the lake wasn’t as secluded as they’d thought.

Xander glanced around the lake and noticed that there were several docks, disappearing into the trees, indicating to him that somewhere at the end of those docks might be cabins or cottages. He started to voice his thoughts when he caught sight of a figure walking along the dock and up the stairs towards them.

"Did you get rid of that mouse?" Buffy asked looking up at Spike, who was situated at the top of the stairs, Xander beside him.

"Where were you?"

Buffy stopped on the step just below them. "I was back here," she lied, "I didn’t wander off, like you’re probably thinking. I totally stayed within hearing distance of the cabin."

"Well, next time you decide to go wandering off, let one of us know? It’s the least you could do…"

Buffy waved her hands uncaringly in the air. "Whatever. If it’ll make you feel better."

"Thank you."

Buffy brushed past them and headed back into the cabin. Spike turned to follow her but was stopped by Xander.

"What?" Spike asked, glancing sideways at him.

Xander gestured with his head out towards the lake. "I think we should get started on the security system ASAP," he suggested. "Something tells me this place isn’t as isolated as we were told."

Spike furrowed his brows but finally turned his attention out to the lake.

Xander pointed towards the docks he had seen earlier. "We got a dock over there and," He moved his finger from one side of the lake to the other, "one over there. And then there’s ours..."

"I see what you mean. But still, they could just be docks and nothin more." Spike told him, hoping to put Xander’s mind at ease, as well as his own. "Tomorrow morning I’ll do a sweep of the area and see what I find."

"Yeah," Xander agreed. "Tonight, I’ll get started on perimeter security."

Both men glanced from one dock to the other before heading inside to finish settling into the cabin.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Dinner had been eaten in silence around the little round table located in the kitchen. After dinner, Buffy had retreated to her room for some alone time while Spike and Xander prepared the equipment to be hooked up around the outside of the cabin.

"Okay," Xander said, picking up his bag of tools and glancing out the window, "I think its dark enough for me to start. I should be done in a couple hours."

"Alright. I’ll check on Buffy and see if she needs anythin’. Call if you need any help." Spike told him before starting off towards Buffy’s room.

"Will do."

Spike heard the back door open and close just as he found himself standing in front of Buffy’s door. He had his hand up in the air prepared to knock when the door swung open to reveal Buffy on the other side. He noticed the look on her eyes held a hint of alarm, which quickly faded as she saw him.

"You alright?" He asked, stepping aside when she moved to get out of the room.

"I thought I heard the door," she told him, "thought maybe you guys were leaving without telling me."

"No, that was jus’ Xander. He has t’do something outside," he informed her, looking back towards the door Xander had just exited before returning his gaze to her. "We won’t be leaving you alone. One of us always has to stay by your side, or at least within a close distance."

Buffy lowered her eyes to the floor. "Oh."

Spike shoved his hands into his pants pockets and gently swayed back and forth on his heels, wondering what to say to her. He knew that she must be bored out of her mind, with the large lack of things she could do. And it didn’t help that the cabin was sans even a television. He was just about to give up when he remembered seeing something in one of the kitchen drawers while searching for the silverware.

"Do you want to play cards?"

Buffy’s head shot up at his question. She had been patiently waiting for him to say something about earlier and maybe interrogate her some about where she’d really been. Truth be told, she was almost hoping he would. She’d started to feel guilty about lying immediately after she had done it.

"Cards?"

A smile formed on his face. "Yeah," he said, walking over to the kitchen. "I found a deck ’f cards earlier and I figure, since I’m bored and you seem pretty bored yourself, we could play."

Buffy watched as he opened a drawer and searched around, before letting out a triumphant “Ah ha!”, when he found them. She couldn’t help but smile at the picture he conjured, standing there like a little boy who’d just found the greatest treasure of all time.

"Sure, I’d love to play cards."

The smile on Spike’s face grew even larger with her answer. He waltzed around the counter, back into the den, tearing into the pack of cards along the way. He motioned for Buffy to take a seat on the couch while he pulled one of the other chairs in the room over so he could sit across from her. He tossed the pack aside after taking the cards out, set them on the table and looked up at her.

"What d’you want ta play? Go Fish, Old Maid…" He halted his talking when he at the amused smirk on her face. "What?"

"How old do you think I am? Old Maid?" She asked him, settling against the back of the couch and crossing her legs. "I do know how to play other games."

"Oh really…" Spike said, unconsciously letting his eyes drop to her legs for a brief second before returning them to her face. "So you want to play something more…fun."

Buffy laughed softly. "Old Maid can be fun, sometimes. But I’m in the mood for something a little more…involved."

"Well, who am I t’ deny a lady what she wants? How about Gin Rummy?"

"Sounds good to me," Buffy replied, scooting to the edge of the couch so she could reach the table.

Spike picked up the stack of cards, ready to shuffle them, but stopped and offered them to her. "Would you like t’ shuffle?"

Buffy shook her head. "No, you go ahead. I’ll deal the next game."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Twenty minutes and several games later, neither Buffy nor Spike were still bored. The couch and chair they’d originally been seated on were now pushed aside in favor of sitting crossed legged on the floor on either side of the coffee table.

Buffy took a sip of the drink Spike had gotten for her during one of her bathroom breaks, waiting for him to deal out the cards. She propped her elbows on the table and watched him.

"How about we make this next game a little more interesting?" She suggested, an idea popping into her head.

"What do you ’ave in mind?" Spike asked suspiciously, pushing the deck across the table towards her to cut.

Buffy did so before continuing. "Well, I was thinking about how you seem to know so much about me, but I hardly know anything about you." She pushed the deck back over to him. "So, how about for every hand I win, I get to ask you a question, which you have to answer. And, every time you win, you get to do the same."

Spike raised an eyebrow at her suggestion. "Not really fair playin’ ground if I already know so much about you, duncha you think?"

Buffy shrugged her shoulders. "I guess so," She said her lower lip jutting out slightly, her eyes looking up towards the ceiling, as she thought for a moment. "But, there are some things you don’t know about me. Private, intimate stuff, that even you FBI boys wouldn’t know."

Spike froze, his hands halting in their task of dealing out the cards. His head shot up and he stared in shock at the girl across from him. He swallowed when he saw the glint in her eyes. She was playing with fire now. Or, was it he who was doing the playing? After all, here he was, practically married, and he was having bad thoughts about the girl he was supposed to be protecting! Two strikes in his book. Best not let things get to far out of hand.

Spike cleared his throat loudly before breaking free of her gaze and resuming his dealing of the cards. "Let’s keep the game the way it is." He told her, setting the deck square in the middle before picking up his cards. "Besides, should be goin’ ta bed soon. It’s gettin’ late."

"What time is it?" Buffy asked, picking up her own cards and sorting them.

Spike glanced over her shoulder towards the wall and read the clock. "10:45."

Buffy’s eyes bugged out. "What?! You think that’s late?"

Before Spike could answer, the front door of the cabin burst open, revealing a thoroughly drenched Xander. They watched as he trudged past them into the nearest bathroom and returned a moment later, a towel being rubbed briskly against his head in an effort to dry his hair.

"Get the job done?" Spike asked.

Xander stopped the process of clearing out his ear long enough to glance over at the two people sitting on the floor in the den. He noticed the cards and shot a look at Spike.

"You’re in here playing cards while I’m out there getting pummeled to death by raindrops the size of golf balls? Where’s the love, man?"

Spike chuckled lightly. "I told you t’come get me if you needed help. ‘Sides, had to keep Miss Summer’s company."

"Whatever," Xander uttered, plopping down onto the couch. "And in answer to your question, no, I didn’t finish. It started raining buckets of water and I didn’t fancy getting electrocuted."

"I hope it stops raining by tomorrow." Buffy spoke up, causing the two men to look at her. "I planned on laying out tomorrow."

"’Laying out’?" Xander asked, furrowing his brows, not understanding her meaning.

"In the sun." Buffy elaborated. "Getting a tan?"

"Oh," Xander said, his mouth forming a small ‘o’. "Cordy calls it sun bathing."

"Cordy?"

"The ball to his chain," Spike answered for him, a smile playing about his lips as Xander shot him another look.

"You’re one to talk," Xander retorted. "Pretty soon you’ll be lugging around the ol’ ball an’ chain with me."

Buffy’s head turned to Spike as the meaning of Xander’s remark became clear. "You’re engaged."

Spike nodded his head slowly. "Yeah," he answered, avoiding meeting her gaze.

Xander stood up from the couch, completely oblivious to the tension he’d just created in the room. He slung the damp towel over one shoulder and calling goodnight, disappeared into his room.

Silence fell in the den after the sound of the door closing faded away. Seconds seemed to tick by slowly as they stared at everything but each other.

Why was it so hard to talk now? Earlier they had been relaxed, more at ease. Both laughing at each other’s jokes and exchanging friendly banter when Buffy had accused him of cheating at one point. But, now the tension was so think even a knife couldn’t slice through it.

Buffy finally stirred, moving to get up. "I guess it is getting late. I’ll see you tomorrow."

"Buffy wait," Spike said, standing up as well. "We still ’aven’t finished our game. You wanna?" He lifted up his hand, indicating the cards he still held.

"No thanks," she said softly. "We can finish it some other time."

"Sure. Some other time," He agreed slowly lowering his hand back down to his side.

"Night."

"Goodnight."

Chapter 8

Disclaimer: Don't own a thing except the story.

*Many thanks to my beta readers.....Miss Kitty and Natalie Elizabeth!!!!*

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Buffy awoke the next morning to the sounds of Mother Nature right outside her window. She lifted her head and glanced out the window on the opposite side of the room. Two small birds were perched on the windowsill, singing and chirping loudly. With a groan Buffy fell onto her back and covered her head with her pillow.

"To early," she mumbled. "No sing-y. Buffy want to sleep."

When the birds started to increase their chirping, Buffy lurched her pillow across the room towards the window. She smiled lazily when the pillow connected with the window, making a loud thwacking sound and causing the two birds to fly away. She was about to lay back down when the sight of something brought her to full alert. There outside, almost directly in front of her window, was a shirtless Spike. Now there was something she didn't mind waking up to.

Buffy pushed the covers off her and slowly made her way to the window. She stood off to the side, making sure that Spike wouldn't catch her spying, and peered out through the glass.

Beads of sweat could be seen glistening off his chest as he moved about, stretching himself. His hair was also damp and slicked back probably from a combination of the dewy morning air and sweat from his pores.

"Guess he went jogging," she concluded to herself.

After deducing where he had been and why he was covered in perspiration, Buffy returned to her earlier task of spying. Buffy lowered her gaze and took in the shorts that hung low on his hips giving her a nice view of that sexy V just below his abs, that gave direction to a more favorable part of the male anatomy. To be able to run her finger along that path was certainly very tempting. A smile crept across her face at the thought of him not knowing she was gazing so openly at his body. It was thrilling to say the
least. Besides, why let a perfectly sculpted body like his go to waste? Someone had to admire it. And since she was the only girl around, why not let it be her?

A groan rushed past her lips when the muscles in Spike's stomach flexed from the twisting and turning of his body. Buffy unknowingly stepped closer to the window, her body in full view. She licked her lips unconsciously and lifted one hand to her stomach. Her finger started to trace small circular patterns over her abdomen as she continued to watch Spike bend and stretch in front of her. The hand on her body slowly started to move up under her nightshirt, seeking out a more sensitive area to touch.

A loud knock at her door broke Buffy free of her trance, causing her to yank her hand back to her side.

"Who's there?" she asked, trying hard to conceal her ragged breaths.

"Xander," the person answered. "Breakfast is ready. Just thought you might want to know."

"Okay," Buffy replied, swallowing hard. "Thank you. I'll be right out."

Buffy heard Xander's footsteps fade as he walked away, back to the kitchen. When she was sure he was nowhere within hearing distance, she turned her attention back to the window. One glance was all it took to notice Spike was gone.

"Must've gone inside," she whispered.

Moving away from the window and over to her suitcase, which was still unpacked, Buffy pulled out her toiletries. On her way to the door she grabbed her robe off the edge of the bed. When her hand closed around the knob, and she was just about to turn it, she froze.

"What if he saw me?" she said, her eyes going wide at the realization that Spike might've seen her spying on him. "Oh, no. Please don't let him have seen me."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


Buffy came into the kitchen to find Spike and Xander already seated at the table. Still unsure if Spike had seen her spying or not, Buffy quickly sat down in the first empty chair she saw. She refused to look up from the spot on the table that currently had her hypnotized, even when she felt Spike's eyes on her.

"Are you going to eat?" She heard Xander ask.

Buffy lifted her head to look at him. "Um, yes."

Xander pointed over his shoulder towards the kitchen with his thumb. "Well, food's on the stove. Plates are by the sink." He informed her before returning to his meal.

Spike, meanwhile, was still staring at Buffy. He noticed her discomfort the minute she walked in to the room. Maybe she realized what he discovered today. Well, just like he was always taught, 'The truth always comes out eventually, just takes a little provoking'.

"So, pet," Spike spoke up, shifting in his chair. "Guess who I ran into this morning."

Buffy's head shot up at this. Instead of sticking around to answer his question or see where he was going with it, she got up from her chair and went to make herself a plate of food.

Xander glanced over his shoulder at Buffy's retreating form then back to his friend.

"Who did you run into this morning?" he asked, shoving his mouth full of syrupy pancakes.

Spike shook his head. "Hold on. Want t' see Miss Summers sweat for a little bit."

Spike turned his attention back to Buffy. He watched her closely as she prepared her plate. His eyes never leaving her as she returned to the table and sat down.

"Well, pet," he asked again. "Care to venture a guess."

Buffy busied herself with pouring syrup on her pancakes, all the while still avoiding Spike's gaze. Finally when she couldn't take anymore of the discomfort he was placing on her, she looked up at him and shrugged her shoulders.

"I have no idea. I haven't met anyone. We have only been here for less than a day."

Spike shook his head. He had given her a chance to 'fess up to what he already knew and she didn't take it. Dropping his fork onto his plate he lifted his hands and placed them under his chin. He stole a glance at Xander before lowering his eyes. He had to keep his anger in check, because from what he could gather about the girl she went into defense mode any time she felt threatened.

"Does the name Riley Finn ring any bells, luv?"

Buffy froze, her fork halfway to her mouth.

"Seems the bloke certainly knows you," Spike went on not waiting for her answer. "Says you came by his house the other day and chatted with him."

"I never went to his house...." Buffy blurted out without thinking. She immediately shut her mouth when she saw Spike arch a brow at her. "Okay. I did talk to him. But I promise you I didn't reveal anything about our situation. I just told him that I was here on vacation."

"Wait a minute," Xander spoke up. "Who is this guy and where does he live?"

"Oh, I know you didn't tell him anything of fact," Spike said, ignoring Xander. "In fact he told me that you told him you were 'ere on vacation with your stepbrother and his cousin. And that the rest of the family was t' come up later in th' week."

Buffy groaned in frustration. "Why does it matter if I talked to him?"

"What matters is that now he wants Joan, Alex, and Randy t' come up t' his house for dinner tonight."

"What? Who are those people?" Xander spoke up again, his voice booming with his annoyance over being left out of the conversation. "Why isn't anyone answering my questions?"

Spike finally broke his gaze away from Buffy and turned to regard Xander. "Miss Summers over 'ere took it upon herself t' get friendly with the neighbors the other day an' then lie t' us about it."

"Ugh," Buffy moaned. "Why is it such a big deal? I'm sure you told him we couldn't make it anyway."

"Actually," Spike said, leaning back in his chair, a smug look on his face. "I took his offer and tonight we are trottin' over t' his house for some good ole barbeque."

"So, Buffy meet a guy named Riley and now we're going over to his house?" Xander asked.

"Why did you do that?" Buffy asked, looking up at Spike. "Doesn't that go against everything you've been taught? Aren't you supposed to go out of your way to keep me away from strangers?"

Spike smiled at her and chuckled softly. "Yeah it is. But, since you went so far out of your way t' make a friend I thought it only necessary t' give you the opportunity t' meet him again." He argued, and then added. "With us there of course."

"Of course," Buffy repeated. She glared at him before pushing her chair back and standing up. "I think I'm going to go layout for awhile." She was about to leave, but turned around to say something to Spike. "Any other social events you have planned for me that I should know about?"

Spike shook his head.

"Good."

Spike watched as Buffy left the room and vanished into her own, the door slamming shut with a loud bang. He didn't know why he accepted Finn's invitation. Maybe it was to see how she interacted with the bloke. Or maybe it was because he had been thrown off guard upon finding out that Buffy had talked to another male. A male that was available and within close quarters for her to get more personal with.

Spike sighed roughly, shaking his head to get that thought out of his mind. No use in getting jealous when she didn't belong to him. But the feelings he had about her talking to this Finn guy unnerved and angered him to no end and he couldn't understand why.

'Because you value the job and you don't want anything to go wrong. That's all these feelings are about. Nothing more, nothing less.' He told himself.

"So where are we eating dinner tonight?"

Spike looked over at his friend and laughed.

Chapter 9

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Buffy lazily moved her feet through the water of the lake, loving the calming effect the water gliding between her toes had on her. Currently, her mind was jumbled with thoughts of earlier this morning and the way Spike had cornered her into a vulnerable position. It didn't make any sense to her why he accepted Riley's offer of dinner, when that clearly went against the FBI's policy of total seclusion, meaning no outside contact. However, it really was her fault for the situation she found herself in at the moment. It never failed. Whenever she did something without thinking it through, she was bound to suffer the consequences. And, since she out and out lied about wandering off the other day it only seemed fair that she be put in an uncomfortable position like the one she would face later tonight. But, still that did not give Agent Hawthorne the right to toy with her like he did this morning. So, now that she had thought everything through, a rare thing with her, she was ready to enact revenge. The only feasible way to do that was to
put him in an uncomfortable position as well. And she knew exactly how to accomplish that.

Buffy turned her head and locked behind her towards the cabin when she heard the faint sound of a door opening and closing. When she saw the tell tale sign of shockingly white hair making its way across the deck she knew it was time to put her plan into action.

She quickly pulled her feet out of the water and laid down on her towel which was already spread out across the dock. She rested her head on her crossed arms and waited for him to come to her.

Spike made his way slowly down the steps towards the dock. He was taking his precious time only so he could study the sunbathing form of Miss Summers. Her already golden skin glistened under the sun from a combination of suntan lotion and perspiration. The pale pink string bikini she wore contrasted nicely with the color of her skin and he found himself smiling in appreciation of the little number. Her sun-kissed hair was pulled back into a loose bun that rested at the nape of her neck. Tiny wisps of hair were whipping in the wind from where they had managed to get free. Yes, she was a sight to behold.

"Havin' fun?" he asked as he stopped alongside her.

Buffy feigned surprise as she lifted her head to regard her visitor. When she saw Spike standing next to her, his hands shoved in the pockets of his khaki pants, she smiled.

"Hi," she greeted, reaching over for her sunglasses and slipping them on her nose. "I am so glad you're here," She told him, shifting around into a sitting position. "For a minute I thought I might have to walk all the way up those steps just to call on you."

Spike arched his brows at her statement. "Oh, wha' is it you need?"

Buffy pointed over to the bottle at the foot of the towel. "I need you to put some lotion on my back."

Spike eyed the bottle wearily. He knew that putting lotion on her would entail him to touch her, and touching her would lead to his body reacting in a wrong way. And said reaction was not something he should be having, him being an engaged man and all.

"Will you?"

Spike looked over at Buffy and almost groaned at the picture she created. Her lower lip was nestled between her teeth as she nibbled on it lightly, waiting for his answer. Her eyes were peeking out at him over the rim of her sunglasses and if he didn't know any better he could swear she was giving him puppy eyes.

Spike sighed in resignation and reached over for the bottle. His logic concluded that although the reaction he would have to touching her body was wrong, the motive behind it was all very innocent. So, since a positive and a negative thing cancel each other out, he was in the clear.

Buffy turned her body so her legs dangled off the edge of the dock. Once again she found her feet slicing through the cool water of the lake as she waited for Spike to lotion her up.

"Don't you want t' lie down?" Spike asked as he squirted a dollop of lotion in his palm.

Buffy shook her head and glanced at him over her shoulder. "Nah, I want to cool down a bit," she informed him, gesturing towards her legs.

Spike nodded his head in understanding before moving closer to her. He knelt behind her, careful to keep his body a good distance a ways, and placed his hand on her back.

Buffy inhaled sharply from the rush of cold contact the lotion brought her as it touched her skin. Since the bottle hadn't been lying in the sun for too long the lotion inside was still decently cool.

Spike kept his hand still as he waited for her to relax again. After she seemed to settle into a comfortable state he started to spread the lotion over the expanse of her back. At first he worked slowly, making sure to spread the lotion evenly and work it thoroughly into her skin. But, after he started to hear little sounds coming from her as his fingers moved over her skin he knew he needed to end this before things became to much for him to handle.

Buffy made sure to keep her face hidden from his view as she smiled. She could feel the tension in his touch and knew he was becoming uncomfortable. But, even though she had managed to reach her accomplishment of making him that way, she decided to take it a little further.

"Wait," she said, causing him to halt. "This isn't working."

Spike had no idea what she was talking about. Then again he wasn't really aware of anything around him except for the feel of her skin under his touch. He stared blankly at her back as her arm snaked around behind her. Suddenly as if he had been doused with cold water he snapped to attention.

"Wha' are you doing?" He asked as her fingers blindly searched for her bikini tie.

Buffy faked her struggle before finally giving up and huffing in failure. "Would you?" she asked Spike, glancing at him over her shoulder. When he didn't move she rolled her eyes and said, " The strings are in the way. Can you untie them and rub some more lotion into my shoulders and neck?"

Spike tentatively reached out and took hold of one end of the string around her neck. He pulled on it and watched as the strings gave way and fell from around her neck.

"Can you do the one on my back too?" He heard Buffy ask, breaking him from his trance of the newly exposed skin, which despite its lack of size still sent a shiver through his body.

"Won't it fall off if I...." He trailed off, letting the meaning of his question hang loosely in the air.

"I'm holding it in place." Buffy assured him, her arm draped across her front over her breasts.

Spike untied the second string and went back to work on rubbing the lotion into her skin.

Buffy moaned from the feel of his hands on her neck. She laughed inside when she felt him freeze for a split second before starting to move again. Maybe she was over stepping the line a little bit, but this was just too much fun.


"That feels nice," she mumbled, letting her head drop some. "Very gifted hands."

"So, why did you lie about meeting that Finn character?" Spike asked, trying
to change the subject to a safer, less sexual one.

Buffy rolled her eyes. Why did he have to bring that up? She thought angrily. She shifted her body a little, realizing that now she was the one becoming uncomfortable. For some reason a simple question coming from an FBI agent made her feel like she was being interrogated.

"I didn't lie," she told him. "I merely avoided bringing it up. If you had asked if I had encountered someone and I didn't say anything then it would have been a lie."

Spike chuckled under his breath. "Nice try, pet. But, I did ask you about it."

Buffy turned her head a little, glancing at him from the corner of her eye. "You did not."

"I asked you where you had been an' you replied that you didn't wander off, that you had been near the cabin th' whole time."

"Fine, I lied," she admitted with some reluctance. "I saw this boat riding through the lake and I had this urge to go see who it was. I was just so overwhelmed by the idea that someone else lived around here that I didn't think about what I was doing while I was doing it."

Spike stopped his task of rubbing lotion on her and started to wipe his hands together. "So, me an' Xander are boring company. Is that what you're tryin' to say?"

Buffy shifted her body so she her side was turned to him. She stared at him for a minute, taking in the narrowed eyes and the set jaw of his features. "No," was all she said before turning her back to him once more.

"Alright then," Spike said, moving to stand. "You're all lotioned up nice an' good. I'll be up on the deck if you need anything."

"Spike," Buffy called out just as he was about to leave.

"Yeah," he said, pausing at the base of the stairs.

"Will you tie me back up?" she requested softly. "I can't really do it myself without having to let go of my top."

Spike didn't answer. He simple walked back over to her and knelt once more behind her. His lifted his hands to her sides and searched out the strings attached to the bikini top.

Buffy lifted her arms a little to give him more room to move his hands as he took hold of the strings. She closed her eyes at the feel of his fingers brushing over her skin. Her mind drifted to earlier and how fast the light airy mood around them had changed once he brought up her indiscretion. She was a little disappointed that the flirtatious atmosphere she had been attempting to create had swiftly changed into one of awkwardness. But, that didn't deter her from wanting to try it again. Knowing that she had some affect on him made her absolutely giddy with excitement. Maybe this little
government vacation could be fun after all.

A smile spread across her face as she thought up different ways to get under Spike's skin. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't even realize he was already done and gone. Only the gentle breeze from the lake rolling over her back let her know that the warmth formerly behind her was no longer there.

Chapter 10

Spike came out of his room buttoning the sleeves of his navy blue button down shirt that was tucked into the well-worn faded blue jeans he had on.
He ran his hands through his freshly showered hair, slicking it back and combing out any unruly curls in the process. He had spent all day in the
sun, watching Buffy as she laid on the dock or swam in the lake, with the sun’s rays beating down on his back. So, to finally be showered and dressed in clean clothes made him feel wonderful. Nothing could ruin the mood he was
in right now, not even the possibility of Buffy flirting with this Riley guy tonight.

Yes, he hated to admit it, even to himself, but he had spent a better part of his day coming up with different scenarios for tonight. Mainly all of
them involving Buffy laughing and having a gay ol’ time with one Riley Finn.

“I really hope he makes steak,” Xander commented, coming into the den as Spike slumped onto a couch. “Ever since you mentioned a barbeque, I’ve been craving steak.”

“Cordelia’s pregnancy rubbing off on you?” Spike inquired, a smirk playing on his face.

Xander laughed at his partner’s remark. “I sure miss her.”

“I know you do,” Spike told him, reaching up to place a comforting hand on his best friends shoulder. “Have you called her lately?”

Xander shook his head no. He’d managed to call her from the airport in DC, but that was the last he’d talked to her. “I think I might try calling her
tonight.”

Spike smiled. “You do that. I’m sure it would do you both some good to talk to each other.”

Xander nodded his head in agreement before asking, “What about you?”

Spike furrowed his brows. “What about me?”

“Are you planning on calling Dru anytime soon? Make amends?”

“Not sure if the timin’ is right an’ all,” Spike said slowly, “’m thinkin’ she might need some more time to cool off.”

Xander shook his head. “Spike, man, if you don’t call her soon she may not talk to you when you do end up calling her.”

Spike smiled softly. “She’s stubborn like that.”

“Yes, she is.”

“’Tis one of the reasons why I’m marryin’ her. I know she’ll always manage to keep me on my...” Spike’s sentence trailed off as his eyes caught sight of Buffy as she stepped out of her room.

If he thought his lustful thoughts couldn’t get any worse, he was promptly proven wrong at that exact moment. Her hair was down and flowing freely over the form-fitting black shirt she had on, which dipped low across her chest, showing off more than a little cleavage. The very short jean skirt
showed off her lengthy tanned legs, tempting Spike to trail his fingertips up them. The longer he was around her, the more she lured him into
worshiping her.

“Keep you on your what?” Xander asked his attention focused on fussing with his shirt cuff, missing the way his partner was gazing at Buffy.

“Um, what?” Spike asked, quickly shaking his head as he realized what he'd been doing. “Oh, my toes. She’ll always keep me on my toes.”

“That she will man...that she will.”

“So, are you two having a secret conversation or can I join in?” Buffy asked, catching her lower lip between her teeth and hooking her hands
together behind her back before stepping up next to them. Her appearance making her seem like the timid, shy girl, wanting for all the world to be
included in the group.

Spike smiled at her. “Sorry luv, its top secret. If we told you what we were talkin’ about we’d have to kill you.”

“Ooh...” she moaned dramatically, her eyes widening. “It’s that kind of conversation.”

“So!” Xander said, clapping his hands together. “Are we ready to go eat some steak?”

“Let’s go,” Spike answered, opening the back door and swinging his arm out in front of him gesturing for Buffy to pass. “I’m sure our good friend Mr.
Finn is waitin’ for us.”

“Maybe,” Buffy agreed stepping over the threshold and glancing back over her shoulder at him. “But isn’t it more fun to arrive fashionably late?”

“Not when there is steak on the line,” Xander added his two cents, stepping past Spike to join Buffy outside.

“Boy, I think I can guess what has been on your mind the past few hours,” Buffy joked, earning a chuckle from Spike as he closed the door and locked it.

“Is it so wrong to love steak?”

Spike and Buffy looked at each other and smiled. They’d both been worried that tonight might turn into one huge uncomfortable situation, but now with Xander on hand; everything might turn out alright after all.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“I hope you don’t mind fish for dinner,” Riley told the group as he escorted them into his den. “I caught some earlier today and thought they would be good for tonight, being fresh out of the water and all.”

Xander grumbled something under his breath about pansy white meat, which luckily was only heard by Spike who was standing right next to him at that moment. Spike laughed quietly at his friend’s misfortune. He had really been looking forward to steak tonight.

“Plus it’s easier to cook,” Riley added, waiting for them all to take seats before sitting down himself. “That way we have more time to talk.”

“I love fish. Fish is great. Did you really catch it all by yourself?”Buffy rambled. Already she was feeling the first signs of an awkward night and was getting nervous.

Spike scowled at her flustered behavior. Why was she acting this way? They had just stepped into his house not two minutes ago and she was already acting like a nervous teenager. ‘Maybe because that’s what she is.’ His subconscious reminded him. ‘A teenager who’s nervous.’

“Yes, I did,” Riley answered with a soft chuckle, finding Buffy’s rambling cute. “There’s a nice secluded part of the lake about five minutes from
here. Maybe sometime I can take you fishing over there?”

"That would be gre-”

“I don’t think so,” Spike quickly interrupted. “Joan isn’t one for fishing.”

Buffy looked at Spike and gave him a fake smile. “Actually Randy, I do like to fish,” she corrected before turning her attention back to Riley. “I make it a point to go fishing at least once a year. It relaxes me.”

“Really? I find it relaxing, too.”

“So, when are we going to start cooking that fish?” Xander asked. All the talk about fish was making him hungrier than he already was.

Spike silently thanked his partner for the quick change in conversation. If he had to sit and watch Buffy flirt with the Finn character for much longer,
he was going to burst.

“I’ve got them marinating in the fridge right now. Let me go see if they’re ready to be thrown on the grill.”

Spike made sure Riley was out of sight before regarding Buffy with a hard glare.

“What?” Buffy asked innocently when she caught Spike’s look.

“Why do you insist on makin’ things harder for me an’ Xander?”

“How am I making things harder?”

“Well, for one thing, you’re practically agreein’ to go fishin’ with him. Do you even understand wha’ our job is?”

“To annoy me?” Buffy replied sarcastically

Spike bite his lower lip, a small smile forming at her words. “Cute. Very cute.”

“I try...” Buffy said sweetly.

“Our job is t’ protect you. We can’t very well do that with you runnin’ off to some secluded place with fishboy in th’ next room.”

“Geez, don’t worry. I didn’t plan on actually going with him anyway. Not with my two dads constantly on my back.”

“Just be careful. That is all I’m asking.”

“Yes Daddy,” Buffy joked, earning a snicker from Xander. Spike only shook his head and silently wondered how long he would be able to handle Buffy and ignore the effect she was having on him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“That was perfect,” Xander commented on a sigh as he leaned back in his chair and rubbed his full belly.

I’m glad you enjoyed it,” Riley thanked him while picking up the dishes from the table. When his hands were full, he headed towards the kitchen to place them in the sink to wash later.

Spike leaned across the table towards Buffy. “So, did you enjoy th’ feast?”

Buffy jerked her eyes away from the direction of the kitchen, where she had been watching Riley, to look at Spike. Her eyes were wide as if she had
been caught doing something bad and she had to blink a few times before she was able to clear her head enough to focus on Spike’s question.

“It was good.”

“And are you enjoyin’ our host?”

Buffy scoffed at his remark. The nerve of him to ask her something like that... Why was it so wrong of her to enjoy the view of a well-packaged man?
She was a girl after all. A girl in a not so serious relationship with life ahead of her.

“As a matter of fact I am,” she answered smugly, flashing him a crooked smile. “Very much.”

Spike was about to say something to that, but Riley’s return prevented him from doing so.

Spike silently fumed as Buffy smiled up sweetly at Riley as he leaned over her shoulder to pick up more dishes. The girl was really getting on his
nerves today. First it was incident on the dock earlier. Oh, he knew what she had been up to. The only question was why had she done it? What was her reasoning behind teasing him to the point where he almost took her right there on the dock? She knew he was engaged. She knew that their
relationship was nothing more than business, so why had she acted that way? Did she sense how she affected him?

“That’s amazing.” Spike heard Xander say and brought his attention back to the discussion. “How long did you serve in the Air Force?”

“Right out of high school until about a year ago.”

“Did you hear that Randy?” Xander asked. “Riley here used to fly fighter jets. He’s a regular Top Gun like Tom Cruise. Hey, did you have a nickname like ‘Maverick’ or ‘Goose’?”

“Um, actually I didn’t fly the jets,” Riley quickly corrected. “I flew the cargo jets. The ones that carried troops or supplies and parachuted them out the back.”

“Oh.”

“Those were some of the best times of my life,” Riley told them, taking a seat at the table after having cleared it. “Wouldn’t trade them for the
world.”

“You’ll have to tell me about them sometime,” Buffy informed him, sending another smile his way.

“I have some pictures and stuff in my study if you want to see them,” he said, making a move to get up from his chair. “Would you like...?”

“Actually,” Spike halted him mid-sentence. “We really need to start heading back before it gets to dark.”

“What? The sun hasn’t even set yet.” Buffy pointed out gruffly.

“Right,” Spike agreed, standing up from his seat. “Which is why we should be leaving now before it does.”

“Come on Randy. We can stay a little while longer.”

Spike shot daggers at Xander, silently communicating his rage at him.
Didn’t he see how bad things were turning out? They hardly knew this Finn character and here they were letting Buffy get all chummy with him.

“Okay,” Spike ground out as calmly as he could. “I guess it won’t hurt to stay for a few more minutes.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Wha’ the ‘ell do you think you’re doing?” Spike whispered to Xanderas they followed behind Buffy and Riley. “We know nothing’ about this guy or
what his motives are.”

“Relax,” Xander said, keeping a close eye on Riley to make sure he wasn’t listening. “What better way can you think of to find out more about this guy
then to actually explore his house?”

“Um, not havin’ Buffy in the house while were doing it.”

“You know that we can’t leave Buffy alone for one minute,”Xander explained while they rounded a corner. “This way we can both keep an
eye on her.”

“I still don’t like this,” Spike confessed. “She’s gettin’ too friendly to fast.”

“Just relax. We’ll be out of here in no time.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“What’s up with your cousin Randy?” Riley asked Buffy as they walked towards his study. He could hear whispering behind him and he’d noticed the
unfriendly glares he was getting from Randy during dinner. “Did I say something to upset him?”

“No,” Buffy answered, glancing over her shoulder at Spike. “He’s just weird like that. We consider him the black sheep of the family.”

Riley laughed as he opened the door to his study and letting them walk in.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Spike glanced at his watch and sighed loudly. An hour had passed and they were still sitting in Captain Cardboard’s house, listening to him prattle on about something that happened during training camp. He looked over at Buffy
and rolled his eyes. She still had the goofy grin on her face that had formed when Riley pulled out a picture of him in his uniform.

“We really need to get going,” Spike spoke up, setting his beer down on the table beside him. “The sun set about 15 minutes ago.”

Riley looked up from the photo album he was showing to Buffy and Xander and
glanced out the window. Sure enough, it was almost pitch black outside.

“Oh, I’m sorry...I didn’t realize,” Riley apologized. “I guess we got caught up in all my stories...”

“We sure did.”

“That was fun,” Buffy said, standing up and moving over towards Spike, who was standing in the doorway. “We should do it again sometime.”

“I would love that.”

Spike cleared his throat loudly. “As much as we would love to do this again. I really don’t think it’s fair of us to cut into your vacation.”

“Nonsense,” Riley said with a wave of his hand. “In fact, maybe next time we can do dinner at your place?”

“Sure,” Buffy replied a little too enthusiastically.

Riley smiled. “Let me walk you out.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That night was a lot hotter than previous ones. Usually a cool breeze off the lake chilled the air just enough for the night to be enjoyable, but
tonight there wasn’t even a hint of a breeze and the inside of the cabin felt like a sauna. Buffy had stripped naked and pushed the covers completely
off her bed, but she still couldn’t seem to cool down enough to fall asleep. Deciding that a glass of ice-cold water might help, she pulled on a t-shirt and headed to the kitchen.

She treaded through the darkness of the cabin, the only light coming from the full moon that peeked in through the windows. When she finally made it
into the kitchen she didn’t even bother turning on the light, not wanting to awaken the others. She opened one of the cabinets and pulled out a tall
glass, filled the glass with ice and water and raised the glass to her waiting lips.

Buffy swallowed the cold liquid and savored the feel of it as it glided down her throat. She closed her eyes and lifted the glass of water up to her
forehead, letting the droplets of condensation cool her heated skin.

“Why is it so hot?” she asked aloud, bringing the glass back to her lips for another long sip of water.

“I don’t know why it’s still so hot in here,” a voice spoke up behind her.

Buffy spun around and saw Spike standing in the doorway to the kitchen, wearing nothing more than his boxers. Buffy felt the temperature in the
room increase as an intense flash of heat ran through her body at the sight of a half-naked Spike.

“I turned the A/C on full blast right before we went to bed,” Spike continued to talk, walking further into the kitchen as he did so. “Guess it hasn’t circulated enough...”

“Guess so,” Buffy managed to say through her daze.

“Does the water help?” Spike asked, stopping right in front of her and pointing at the glass in her hand.

Buffy snapped out of her stupor and glanced down. When it finally registered what he had asked her she nodded her head vigorously. “Oh yes, it helps a lot.”

Buffy lifted the glass to her lips, thinking maybe if she focused her attention on anything, even the simple task of drinking water, besides how
close Spike was to her and how little he was wearing, then she might be able to control herself.

She could feel his eyes on her as she drank. Slowly and cautiously she peered at him over the rim of the glass. One look into his blue eyes sent a chill up her spine, giving her the relief she needed from the heat.

“Can I have a sip?” Spike asked, his eyes glued to her moisture-kissed lips.

Buffy handed him the glass and gave him a perplexed look as he took the glass from her hand and moved to set it on the counter behind her, his arm wrapping around her body in the process. The heat rushed through her again at the closeness of their bodies, their lower halves barely touching.

“Not from there...” Spike told her, resting his hand on the curve of her hip and pulling her slightly closer. “From here,” he finished his lips inching
closer to hers.

And just like that their mouths met in a fiery kiss.

Okay, maybe it didn’t start out as that, but it didn’t take long before she was matching him stroke for stroke.

Buffy’s arms came up to rest around his neck, her body pressing into his, pulling herself closer. She moaned her approval when his lips left her mouth
to trail across her cheek to suck on her ear. She felt Spike's hand move from her hip to the front of her shirt.

"Spike," she breathed. "We can’t..." She stopped talking when she felt his hand brush against the skin of her abdomen. "Oh god, don't stop..."

Spike pulled back, his breathing erratic. He looked at her. “Do you know what you do to me?” He asked closing his eyes and leaning his forehead
against hers. “When I saw you coming down the steps of the plane all I wanted to do was taste you. Feel your body against mine.” He pulled back
again. “You taste so good.” He brought his hand up to touch her breast, touching it the way he had on the jet earlier. “Feel so good...”

Buffy bit her lower lip and groaned. Why was this happening? She had a boyfriend. He was engaged. She had to stop this before it got to out of hand.

She gasped out loud when she felt Spike yank her t-shirt down, baring one breast to his hungry gaze. Her knees weakened when his mouth covered an
erect nipple and softly suckled it. Reaching behind her she gripped the edge of the counter to help keep her balance. Her right hand knocked into the
glass Spike had placed there and sent it falling to the floor, where it shattered into a million pieces.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Buffy’s eyes snapped open. It took awhile for her sight to adjust to the darkness, even with the help of the moonlight, before she could register
where she was. And that she was alone.

“Buffy? Are you okay?” she heard someone ask before the kitchen light snapped on and blinded her with its brightness.

She saw Spike standing in the doorway, his hair disheveled and his chest rising and falling heavily. She tore her eyes away from him to look down at her hand and that’s when she noticed the broken glass and water around her feet. She quickly bent down to start picking the glass pieces up.

“I...I just made myself a glass of water,” she explained, picking up pieces and placing them in her hand. “I didn’t mean to wake you.”

“Buffy, don’t touch the glass,” Spike ordered, walking over to the broom closet to retrieve a dust pan and broom.

“Ouch!”

Buffy dropped all the glass from her hand, sending it scattering all over the floor. She clutched her hand tightly to her body.

Spike came over to her and pulled her hand free so he could exam it. “I told you not to touch the glass,” he reminded her leading her over to the sink and turning the water on.

Buffy winced in pain when the cold water hit the cut on her palm.

“I need to clear the blood away so I can see if there’s any glass that needs to be pulled out.”

She remained silent as she watched him work on her hand.

“Put some pressure on it,” Spike told her, reaching into a drawer and pulling out a dishcloth. “When I finish picking up this glass we’ll go to the bathroom and bandage you up.”

Buffy nodded her head in understanding, barely even hearing what he was saying. The only thing that was running through her head was that everything that had occurred before never really happened. The kissing. The groping.
The words he had spoken to her. All of it never happened.

This heat was really getting to her.

Chapter 11

"What's going on? Is everything okay?" Xander asked, appearing in the kitchen doorway with a gun in hand. "I heard a crash."

"Everything is fine," Spike assured him while picking up the last of the glass off the floor. He stood and turned to face Xander. "Buffy just dropped a glass and it shattered on the floor."

Spike walked over to the trashcan and dumped the contents from the dustpan into it.

"Sorry Xander." Buffy apologized. "I didn't mean to wake you up."

"That's alright," Xander said, putting the safety back on his gun. "Wasn't really asleep anyway."

Spike nodded his head. "Me neither."

"It's too damn hot tonight." Xander complained. He set his gun down on the counter and went to the fridge. He pulled out a beer and unscrewed the cap. "My bed sheets are practically soaked from all my sweat."

"Does the AC not work?"

"Apparently not. I turned it on full blast just before we all went to bed," Spike said opening the door to the storage closet and replacing the broom and dustpan to its rightful place.

Xander took a long swig off his beer. "Do you think they have some fans stored around here someplace? I mean they have to have something for when the place gets this stuffy, right?"

"Maybe," Spike agreed. "I'm going to help Buffy bandage her hand and then I'll help you look for one."

"Sure."

Xander left the kitchen in search of a fan, while Spike and Buffy headed in the direction of the bathroom. Her hand had stopped bleeding but still needed to be clean and wrapped up. Spike flicked the light on and waited for Buffy to step in before closing the door behind them, leaving it slightly ajar. Buffy took a sit on the toilet lid and watched as Spike gathered up supplies.

"Alright," Spike spoke up moving to stand by Buffy. "Lets 'ave a look at that hand."

Buffy winced in pain as he slowly started to pull the cloth away from her hand. Her hand started to throb once the wound was exposed to air. Spike mumbled an apology before pulling her hand closer to his face to examine the cut. He set her hand on the countertop and reached for the alcohol.

"This might sting," he warned her then swiped the cut with the cotton ball he had soaked with the alcohol.

"Shi…. that burns." Buffy tried to pull her hand away.

"Hold still."

Buffy ground her teeth together and only started to relax when she felt Spike lightly blowing on her hand. The pain ceased and was replaced by a tingling sensation that traveled up through her arm and all over her body.

"Still 'urt?" Spike asked looking up at her while he continued to blow on her hand.

She shook her head.

"That was bloody stupid you know."

"Excuse me?"

"Trying t' pick up the glass with your bare hand," Spike continued on lifting her hand up again to inspect for any tiny pieces of glass that might be in the cut. "Bout as stupid as you makin' nice with that Riley bloke."

"What are you….Ouch!" She screamed in pain and violently jerked her hand free from his. "What is your problem? Why are you still upset about Riley? Are you trying to kill me? Man that hurt."

Spike waited for her to stop moaning before taking hold of her hand again to continue the task of cleaning it out.

"Cut doesn't look too deep. Don't think you'll need stitches."

Buffy exhaled loudly, relieved that the cut wasn't bad. "Thank goodness."

Spike began to put away the first aid supplies. "Just need to bandage it up then you can go back to bed," he told her while screwing the cap back on the alcohol.

"I'm not tired."

"Want to trot on over to Captain Cardboards and listen to some more of his war stories? I'm sure that will put you right to sleep."

Buffy rolled her eyes at his remark. "Why does it bother you so much that I might be interested in Riley?"

"It doesn't."

"Yeah right," she sneered standing up and moving around him to leave the bathroom. Before she was even halfway out the door Spike had her by the arm and was pulling her back into the bathroom.

"Do you think I don't know what you're doing? The little games you've been playing ever since we arrived at the cabin."

"I am not…."

"Found one," Xander voice sounded through the door.

Spike let go of Buffy's arm just as Xander pushed open the door to the bathroom to show them the fan he had found. Buffy stood frozen in place, her gaze fixed on Spike and her mind reeling from what he had just said.

"I only found the one though so we'll have to make do with it," Xander explained oblivious to the tension that was in the air around him. "Maybe we can all sleep in the same bed and…."

"No!" Both Spike and Buffy objected at the same time.

"O-Kay," Xander said warily, his eyes shifting back and forth between the two. "I was only kidding."

"Why don't we all go sit in the den for awhile and cool off," Spike suggested.

"Sounds good to me."

"I think I'm just going to go to bed," Buffy told them, stepping around Xander and leaving the bathroom. "Suddenly I started to feel tired."

Xander glanced at Buffy as she walked into her room and shut the door. He looked over at Spike, who had his eyes shut and was shaking his head.

"Is she okay?"

Spike opened his eyes and exhaled loudly. "Yes she's fine. Just bloody fine."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

An hour later Xander was fast asleep in the recliner, while Spike was still wide awake. The soft humming of the fan as it blew air throughout the room was slowly luring him into sleep. But, he forced himself to stay awake. The main reason he wanted to remain awake is because he knew Buffy was. Ever since he and Xander had made their way into the den and set up the fan he had heard her moving around in her room. Despite claiming to be tired earlier, she wasn't even close to going to bed anytime soon.

His thoughts drifted back to the incident in the kitchen. The way she had been acting and the body language she had exhibited told him that something had happened before he had found her. What that something was he wasn't quite sure. Her breathing had been heavy, erratic, out of control. When he had reached for her hand to look at it he noticed that her pulse was beating at a fast rate. He couldn't have startled her that much to cause that kind of reaction. But, obviously something had.

He jerked his head up when he heard a door open. He saw Buffy emerge from her room and their eyes locked. Buffy was the first to break the stare and quickly headed down the hall towards the kitchen. Spike didn't wait a second before he was up on his feet and following her.

"Thought you were tired," he said, leaning against the doorframe and watching as she searched for something in the cabinets.

Buffy paused in her search and almost turned around to address him, but decided to ignore him instead.

Spike looked on as she pulled out a glass from the cabinet and moved over to the sink. "Going to break another glass?"

Buffy's hand froze on the faucet. She set the glass down on the counter and went back over to the cabinet she had gotten the glass from. Opening it up, she reached in and pulled out a plastic cup.

"Is this better?" she sarcastically asked him, waving the cup in the air.

"Such a way to treat someone who went out of his way to help you earlier."

Buffy scoffed at that. "It's your job to help me. So, it's not like you're really doing it out of the kindness of your heart."

Spike simply shook his head at her statement. If he had to admit to something right now it would be that this was turning out to be one of his toughest assignments and Buffy wasn't making it any easier.

Buffy silently filled her glass with water, praying that he wouldn't say anything more to her. She took one sip before walking past Spike and towards the back door. Her hand was barely touching the knob before Spike was by her side, his body pressing against the door.

"Where are you going?"

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Let's see. It's four o'clock in the morning so I thought I might trot on over to Riley's and see what he was up to."

"What is your problem?"

Buffy didn't answer, deciding only to roll her eyes and look away.

"Does this have to do with what I said earlier?" Spike asked. He got his answer when he saw her body tense up and heard her inhale sharply. "You are playing games with me."

This time Buffy looked up at him. "I am not."

"Why?" He questioned. "You know I'm engaged. You know what I'm doing 'ere is my job. I shouldn't 'ave feelings for you. Nothin' should be happening between us."

Buffy closed her eyes. "I know…."

She was cut off by the feel of Spike's hand against her face and then the feel of his lips pressing against hers. She opened her eyes and saw him looking at her. His face mere inches from hers, his unsteady breath falling softly on her lips. She had just enough time to shallow before his lips were back on hers.

This time the kiss was more urgent. The hand that hand been resting against her cheek had shifted down to her hip and was pulling her body closer to his. The cup that was in her hands was forgotten as she let it fall to the ground so she could wrap her arms around his neck.

The kiss grew in intensity as Spike's tongue gained entrance into her mouth and sought out her own. Anyone who might have witness the kiss would assume that it would lead to more. But both parties at that moment were fighting hard to keep their hands idle.

Spike broke the kiss and leaned his forehead against hers, attempting to catch his breath. The sudden moaning of his name by Buffy is what caused him to unexpectedly push away from her and leave her standing alone in the hallway.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Spike walked into his room and shut the door. He walked over to his bed and sat down. Leaning his elbows on his knees he buried his head in his hands as he tried to figure out what he had just done.

It had all been for one reason, to relieve some of the tension that had been building inside of him. He had only meant to kiss her and walk away. It wasn't until now that he realized what a mistake it was to have done that.

Because now he had started something that he knew he wouldn't be able to stop.

TBC....................

Chapter 12

Buffy turned off the shower and squeezed away the access water in her hair before reaching over for her towel. She patted her self dry then stepped out onto the bathmat. She then bent over, flipping her hair over as she did so, and wrapped the towel around her head. She put her rob on next and stepped up to the counter, wiping the condensation from the mirror away with the sleeve of her rob.

"Well, good morning," She sang to herself once she saw her reflection in the mirror. "You slept rather well last night didn't you?"

"Why yes I did," She answered herself. "Like a baby."

She smiled and shook her head, laughing at how silly she was being. Still smiling she plucked her toothbrush out of its holder and put some toothpaste on it. She was just about to start brushing when she heard a knock on the door.

"Who is it?" She asked, shutting off the faucet and turning her attention to the person standing on the other side of the door.

"Are you going to be much longer?" An impatient Xander asked. "I really have to use the bathroom."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "I just have to brush my teeth and then I will be right out."

She heard Xander groan loudly then the sounds of his footsteps as he walked away.

"Not my fault you genius's picked a cabin with only one bathroom. " She mumbled under her breath even though she knew no one could hear her.

"Now now," she scolded herself in the mirror. "Are we going to let anything ruin this glorious day?"

Buffy's smile returned. "No. Absolutely not."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Why do women take so long in the bathroom?" Xander wondered aloud, returning to the kitchen where Spike was. "Cordelia takes forever and a day in the bathroom and comes out looking the same as she did when she went in. Why?"

"One of life's mysteries," Spike replied. "Kinda like 'Why do women go to the bathroom in groups?' One of the many things men will never understand about women."

"Yeah," Xander agreed.

"By the way," Xander spoke up, his hand resting on his neck where he was massaging it. "Thanks for letting me fall asleep on the sofa chair last night. This crick in my neck is going to be with me for days."

Spike paused in the middle of pouring milk into his cereal bowl, his mind recalling the events of last night. He quickly shook his head and cleared away the thoughts before Xander noticed something was wrong.

"Sorry about that," Spike apologized, snapping the cap back on the milk jug and placing it back in the fridge. "Had other things on my mind last night."

"Still thinking about Dru?" Xander inquired, rolling his head back and forth on his shoulders.

"Yeah," Spike lied. Already the guilt from what he had done was starting. He never lied to his partner. Never in there 3 years did he ever keep anything from Xander, and now he had no other choice. He knew it was wrong, but he didn't want Xander to know what he had done last night.

"Listen, I know Dru loves you," Xander started to console. "You guys have been together too long to let anything this small break you up. You two are like Cordelia and me. You have your ups and downs, but you always get through them. I am sure she will understand…"

"Xander!" Spike yelled, slamming his bowl onto the counter. He turned to face his friend and saw the look of shock on his face. He sighed and started to rub his temples. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to snap like that. I just don't feel like talking about it right now."

"Sure man," Xander reassured him. "Whatever you say."

"Bathroom's free." Both men heard Buffy say as she appeared in the doorway, a grin spread across her face.

"Thank the gods,' Moaned Xander as he fled the kitchen, leaving Spike and Buffy alone.

Spike cleared his throat and turned back to the task of eating his cereal in silence. Buffy, however, had over things on her mind besides good. Things she had wanted to discuss with Spike without Xander around.

"So," Buffy broke the silence, clasping her hands behind her back and moving to lean against the counter opposite of Spike. "What's on the agenda for today?"

"Don't know," Spike answered, turning his back to her so he could clean his dishes in the sink. "Thought I would ride into town and get some stuff from the local store."

"Great," Buffy said a little too enthusiastically. "I can go with you. Pick up some magazines to read, maybe a book. Not having a TV is killing me. I thought it would be okay, you know, just lazing around getting some sun, but I am so…"

"I feel tens pounds lighter," Xander commented upon his return to the kitchen, lifting his arms up over his head and stretching. "What's for breakfast?"

"Hey, Xan."

Xander lowered his arms and looked at his partner. "Yeah?"

"Would you mind going into town today and picking up some stuff?"

"Sure. I need some things for the security perimeter anyway."

"Good, you can take Buffy with you." Spike glanced over at Buffy as he said this. Her mouth was open and her eyes were looking at him confusedly. "She said she needed to buy a few things too."

Xander nodded his head. "Just let me eat something real quick and we'll be on our way."

Spike left the kitchen in a hurry. Apparently it wasn't fast enough because he could hear the fast footsteps of a curious Buffy behind him.

"What was that?"

Spike ignored her as he opened the front door of the cabin and stepped outside. He continued to ignore her as they made their way to the SUV parked on the side of the cabin.

"Are you even listening to me?" She asked him, reaching up to touch his arm. Her fingers barely grazed his skin before he whirled on her so fast it almost sent her falling backwards onto the ground.

"Buffy you don't want to do this," he warned her.

Buffy scoffed at his remark. "Well, correct me if I'm wrong Agent Hawthorne, but wasn't it you who started it? Last night if I remember correctly when you kissed me."

"I shouldn't have done that. I'm sorry." He turned away from her and started to dig in his pockets for the keys to the car.

"You're sorry?" Buffy repeated, disgust lacing the words as she spoke them. "That's all you have to say about it."

"What do you want me to say?" Spike yelled at her. By now he had the car door open and was rummaging around inside for something. "That I loved every second of it? That I want to do it again?"

"No, I…" she began to protest.

"Well, I can't." He told her, slamming the door shut after finding what he needed. "I am engaged. Or have you forgotten about that?"

Buffy glared at him. All she had wanted to do was ask him why he had done it. She didn't want to make him feel guilty about it. And she sure as hell didn't want him to make her feel like scum on the bottom of his shoe.

"Apparently I wasn't the one who forgot." She spat back at him, her eyes glistening over slightly from the tears she was trying so hard to hold back.

She didn't wait for him to reply to her. Instead she turned on her heel and stormed back into the cabin, content on waiting for Xander in her bedroom

Chapter 13

Buffy sulked in the passenger seat of the SUV as Xander drove them to the local convenience store. They had only been driving for about five minutes, but to Buffy it seemed like forever. When they had left the cabin Spike had been nowhere in sight. To say that she was happy she hadn't seen him would've been a lie. She had wanted to run into him, if only to give him the cold shoulder treatment. But no, he had to go and ruin that for her too.

"Men," she spat out under her breath.

"What?" Xander asked having heard her.

"Huh?" Buffy asked him, quickly sitting up in her seat when she realized he had heard what she said.

"What?" He asked again, taking a sharp turn off the dirt path they had been on, onto a gravelly road. "Did you say something?"

"No."

They both sat in silence for the next two miles, before Xander decided to speak.

"Are you enjoying the cabin?"

Buffy, who had been busy watching the trees zoom by her window, rolled her eyes. What the hell kind of question was that? Being forced against your will to stay somewhere with two people who clearly have no sense of fun was no picnic. Anyone in there right mind would realize that without having to bother questioning it.

"You must miss your wife a lot," Buffy stated, hoping to steer the conversation away from her.

"Cordy? Yeah, I miss her. She's seven months pregnant you know," Xander told her. "She'll be having that baby real soon. Hopefully I will be done with this assignment before that happens."

"Yeah," Buffy agreed, turning her attention back to the trees and tuning out Xander. She couldn't wait for this whole experience to end.


"Only thirty five minutes away," Xander remarked as they both got out of the car and started walking across the dirt parking lot towards the tiny shop. "Not bad at all."

Buffy nodded her head, not really having heard what he said but agreeing anyway. She was too busy studying where they were and wondering how in the hell it still existed. Four tiny gas pumps were located on a tiny island in front of the run down building that was supposed to pass as a convenience store. Two of the pumps were labeled out of order and one of the remaining two didn't even have a nozzle connected to it. Leading Buffy to conclude that gas was not the thing keeping this store in business. Her gaze left the pumps and shifted over to the building they were about to enter. The windows to the place looked as if they hadn't been cleaned in years. They were covered in some kind of dirt that gave them an opaque quality making it impossible to see through them. The open/closed sign hanging on the door currently showcased the closed side, but people were still entering and exiting oblivious to the forgotten sign. The roof was patchy like the weather and age had finally started to take its toll. Overall the appearance of the store did not make Buffy feel comfortable.

Just as Xander had opened the door and was holding it for her to enter, two young kids came running out almost knocking her over in the process.

"Which flavor did you get?" They heard one kid ask the other as they ran around the corner of the store.

"Kids," Xander sighed.

Buffy tore her gaze away from where she had been watching the kids run off to look at him. She silently pleaded with him to take her back to the cabin. She was afraid if she went through those doors something bad was going to happen to her.

"After you," Xander told her, gesturing with his hand for her to enter.

Buffy slowly stepped over the threshold and went inside the store. She heard the door shut and felt Xander right behind her.

Buffy looked around and was shocked. The outside of the store certainly didn't match the inside like she had originally thought it would. Everything looked new. The floors where white and glistened like they had just been cleaned. The ceiling looked so good you couldn't even tell the roof covering it was fallen apart. It almost looked like the stores back in Sunnydale.

"Good morning."

Buffy turned her head towards the direction of the voice that had just greeted them. She saw an elderly man wearing a blue apron standing behind the only counter in the place looking over at them and smiling. She gave a little smile of her own to the man.

"Morning," Xander greeted back. "Can you tell me where I can find some batteries?"

"Back wall."

"Thanks."

Buffy felt Xander grip the back of her elbow and start to pull her along with him. She stopped him.

"Listen," she began as he let go of her elbow and turned to look at her. "Is it alright if I explore this place on my own? I mean it's so small you could just glance over the shelves and spot me in a second. Besides there is only one way in and out of here," she argued pointing to the door behind them.

Xander contemplated this for a minute before reluctantly nodding his head. "Okay, but don't let Spike know about this."

"I promise," Buffy swore before turning on her heels and heading for the magazine racks on the other side of the store.

Ten minutes later Buffy was sucking on a Cherry blowpop and engrossed in an article in Cosmo titled "What His Kisses Say About Him". She was too busy replaying the kiss she had shared with Spike in her head that she didn't notice the man who was eyeing her from down the aisle.

"Did he nibble on my lip?" she asked herself, closing her eyes and trying to remember every detail.

"What's a pretty thing like you doing in a place like this?"

Buffy jumped slightly and dropped the magazine in her hand. She bent down to retrieve it and accidentally knocked heads with the man who was also kneeling to pick up the magazine for her.

"Ow."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Buffy started to apologize, but stopped when she saw who it was. "Riley?"

"Buffy," Riley greeted, rubbing the side of his head then reaching down to pick up her magazine. "How are you?"

Buffy took the magazine out of his hand and placed it back on the shelf. She quickly glanced around the store to make sure Xander wasn't close by and wouldn't be able to hear them.

"I'm fine," she answered. "Are you okay?"

Riley nodded his head.

"Are you here with your cousin Randy?" Riley asked, looking over his shoulder around the store. "Did I do something to upset him last night? He seemed a little angry when you guys left."

Buffy laughed and shook her head. "That's just his personality. He doesn't get along well with anyone, the whole family hates him."

"Really?"

"Not really," Buffy corrected. "Just me."

Riley laughed. "So, are you here alone?"

"I came with my brother, Alex."

"Oh."

"How long has this place been here?" Buffy asked him. "Is it safe to shop here?"

"What do you mean?"

"The up keep on the outside isn't very good."

Riley laughed again. "That's Goober for you."

"Goober?"

"The guy who owns the place," he informed her.
He pointed to the man who had greeted her and Xander earlier. He was still standing behind the counter, smiling and chatting up people as he rang them up.

"Goober's motto is never judge a book by its cover." She heard Riley talking as she continued to watch Goober. "I guess he likes to incorporate that into his lifestyle. You know he used to be a Marine."

"Really?"

"Yep, comes over to my cabin from time to time and we talk about the good old boot camp days."

"Sounds like a nice man."

"He is."

Buffy cleared her throat and looked over at the magazines. She wondered if she should go find Xander or continue her talk with Riley.

"When are you going to take me on a ride in your boat around the lake?" Buffy asked, deciding that it was more fun talking to Riley then returning to a cabin where she was sure Spike would still be ignoring her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Spike found himself checking his watch for the forth time in the past hour. Xander and Buffy had been gone a long time and he was starting to get worried. He had finished setting up the alarm system around the cabin and was now sitting on the front porch waiting for them.

"Dammit I should have gone with them," he cursed himself. "Where the hell are you Xander?"

He stood up from the front step that he had been sitting on and went back inside the cabin. He started heading back to the kitchen to make something to eat, but stopped when he found himself standing in front of Buffy's bedroom door. Maybe he could do a little investigation while they were gone.

"What the hell are you investigating?" he chided himself, his hand frozen on the doorknob. She isn't hiding anything from you. You're the damn FBI; her life's an open book as far as you're concerned."

Still something willed him to open the door and go inside. The first thing his eyes landed on when he entered the room was her suitcase, or suitcases to be more precise, which were still packed. This was odd considering they were scheduled to be here for awhile. He pulled the biggest one onto the bed and unzipped it. Nothing seemed to pop out at him at first. There were the usual things, her clothes and some personal items from home. It wasn't until he started feeling around the inside pockets of the suitcase that he found something interesting.

"Bloody hell," he mumbled shaking his head at the thing he held in his hand. "I can't believe she brought it."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Buffy jumped out of the car once Xander came to a full stop and bolted for the cabin. She ran into the house and briefly glimpsed Spike sitting on the couch as she went into her room. No sooner had she entered the room before the door was opened again and Spike came walking in behind her.

"Don't you know how to knock?" She asked still a little annoyed with him from the way he treated her this morning. "If you want to keep tabs on me that bad why not just take the whole damn door off the hinges. That way you can look in on me anytime you want."

"Why do you have this?"

Buffy looked over her shoulder to see what he was referring to. When she saw the object he was holding in his hand her mouth fell open in shock.

"Where did you find that?" She asked, grabbing her cell phone out of his hand.

Spike took the phone back from her and put it in his pocket. "Were you planning on using that? I thought you were specifically told to keep all forms of communication at home. That meant no cell phones. You know they can trace your location if you use that thing."

"You went through my suitcase didn't you," she stated when she finally remembered where she had put it when packing her suitcase.

"Yes, I did. But that doesn't matter. What matters is the fact that you aren't supposed to have this with you."

"I can't believe you went through my things," Buffy said a bit stunned. "First you chew my head off this morning because of something you did. And, now you go through my things."

"You aren't supposed to have any form of communication on you."

"What gives you the right to go through my personal stuff?"

"To protect you," Spike finally answered. "I'm doing my job."

Buffy scoffed at his answer. She pushed past him and walked out of her room, bumping into Xander on the way. He had just come into the cabin and caught the tail end of their fight. They heard the back door slam as the left the cabin.

"What just happened?" he asked Spike who had his back turned to him.

Spike pulled the cell phone out of his pocket and threw it to Xander. "I found this in her suitcase."

"Wow," Xander uttered twirling the phone around in his hand and flipping it open. "Has she used it yet?"

"I don't think so. If she has then we're in deep shit."

"Do you want me to go after her?"

Spike shook his head making his way out of the room. "No, I'll go get her. You stay here in just in case."

"Hey!" Xander called out to Spike as he was about to open the door.

Spike turned to look at his friend. "Yeah?"

"Go easy on her," Xander suggested. "She's just a kid."

Spike nodded his head. He stepped out of the cabin and scanned the area around them. He spotted her a few yards down the shore heading in the direction of Riley's cabin.

"Just a kid," he repeated out loud still watching as she got further and further away. "Then why am I falling for her."

“Guarding Elizabeth”
Chapter 14

“I am so bored!” Buffy moaned plopping herself down onto the sofa chair next to the couch. “Isn’t there anything to do around here other than swimming and swimming?”

“Of course there is,” Xander insisted, picking up one of the weapons he was currently cleaning before answering her question. “There’s hiking.”

“Hate bugs.”

“Well then there’s skiing.”

“I’m tired of the water,” Buffy complained. “What can I do that doesn’t involve me getting wet?”

Xander put down the cloth he had been using to clean his gun and slowly began to piece the weapon back together. “Not quite sure about that one.”

Buffy sulked a little bit further into her chair. She couldn’t believe they had only been here for two weeks and already she wanted to kill herself. She could make her own fun if one person was willing to participate in the activities she had in mind. But, Spike was still avoiding her at all costs. After he had found her cell phone she went to Riley’s hoping he could liven up the dull time she was having here. Unfortunately Spike had shown up at just the right time and ended things before they even started. On the way back to the cabin Spike had tried not to hurt her feelings by explaining his inappropriate behavior on lack of sleep. She chose to ignore him and hasn’t spoken to him since that day. So, now they were both ignoring each other. And both of them made sure that neither was alone in a room together unless Xander was present.

Buffy’s thoughts disappeared when she heard the cock of Xander’s gun. She looked over at the coffee table which was littered with weapons. This was the first time she had noticed what he was doing.

“Wow,” She whispered, sliding off the chair and onto the floor. “I’ve never held one of these before. I mean I’m around them all the time with the extra security daddy has put around our house, but I’ve never actually held one.” She told him, reaching out with her right hand and wrapping it around one of the guns.

“Oy! What th’ hell are you doing?!”

Buffy’s hand froze. She gritted her teeth and closed her eyes, silently willing him to go away. Why did he always have to ruin her fun?

“Harris, why are you letting her touch those?” Spike grilled moving around the couch and stopping beside the coffee table, his gaze fixed on Buffy who was still holding onto the gun.

“Sorry Spike,” Xander apologized, prying the gun away from Buffy and setting it back down on the table far away from her. “I was so focused on putting this one back together I didn’t realize what she was doing.”

“These are dangerous, pet. We don’t need you blowing your hand off because curiosity got the better of you.”

“Dangerous? Really?” Buffy mocked, turning her head to look up at him. “Thank you for telling me that Officer Spike. Are there anymore lessons I’ll be learning from you today?”

Spike sighed, “I don’t have to put up with this shit today. Xander I’m going for a short walk through the woods just to check out the area some more, see if there are any houses we may have overlooked. I’ll be back later.”

“Why don’t you take Buffy with you?” Xander suggested.

Spike was about to tell Xander why that would be a bad idea until he heard Buffy talking.

“I really don’t think it would be safe for me to go walking around the woods like that,” Buffy theorized, totally against the idea of being alone with Spike even though a part of her loved the thought.

“Spike I have to run up to Goober’s again,” Xander said, paying no attention to Buffy. “If you don’t take her with you she’s going to be all alone at the cabin. Plus the girl is bored; it will give her something to do.”

“I can go to Riley’s,” Buffy recommended upon hearing what Xander had told Spike. “That way I won’t be alone.”

Spike sneered at the mention of Riley’s name. “Fine she can come with me.”

“But, I just said….” Buffy began to protest.

“Let’s go,” Spike shouted back to her as he was going out the door and down the porch steps. “We haven’t got all day.”

Buffy exhaled roughly before digging her heels into the carpet and stomping out the door after him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Ouch!” Buffy yelled for the fourth time after being hit by a branch. “Why are there so many trees!?”

Spike rolled his eyes but continued to walk along the narrow barely visible trail that had been made by others over the years. His eyes scanned the area around them in every direction, his ears honed in on any tiny bit of sound he heard off in the distance.

“Luv, we are in a forest”

“I know that,” Buffy snapped back, smacking her arm where she thought she felt a bug. “It’s just these stupid branches keep smacking me in the face.”

“Push ‘em away then,” Spike told her a bit agitated. Whose idea was it for her to come along? Oh right, Xanders! He would just have to kill him when they got back.

“Everything is so simple to you isn’t it,” Buffy scoffed. “Just one simple solution for every little problem that occurs in life.”

“Tis the way it always should be, eh?”

“Like for instance,” Buffy went on, choosing to ignore him. “Kissing a girl and then refusing to talk to her.”

“I don’t want to talk about that.”

“See!” Buffy exclaimed when he proved her point. “Why? Because the guilt is eating away at you or is it because if giving the opportunity you’ll do it again?”

Spike stopped causing Buffy to run into him. He turned around to face her, his jaw drawn tight as he looked off into the distance searching for the right answer to her question.

Buffy crossed her arms and waited.

“Yes,” Spike finally answered before starting his walk again down the trail.

Buffy stood there for all of ten seconds with her mouth hung open before snapping back to reality. She raced to catch up to him, not caring this time how many trees hit her along the way.

“You didn’t answer my question,” She accused stopping in front of him.

“Buffy, why do you care why I kissed you? You seem too preoccupied making nicey nice with Captain Cardboard anyway.”

“I know why you kissed me,” Buffy told him stepping a little bit closer. “I just want to know why you won’t do it again.”

“I just can’t.”

“Why?”

“Because.”

“Why because?”

“Buffy.”

“Spike.”

Buffy stood there impatiently tapping her foot on the ground as she waited for his answer. When he didn’t say anything she huffed and spun away from him.

“That’s fine,” she brushed him off, choosing instead to make her own excuses for why he was acting this way. Just like she had been doing for the past week. “I wasn’t looking for some type of comm…..”

Buffy cried out in shock when she felt Spike’s hand on her arm pulling her to a stop and spinning her around. The next thing she felt were his lips closing over hers while he continued to bring her body closer to his own.

Spike shuddered when her body became flush with his. His mind raced with a hundred thoughts as his lips continued to play across hers, memorizing every inch of her. His hands pulled up the back of her shirt until they came into contact with her warm skin. This is what he had dreamed about for the past few days.

Buffy felt a shiver run through her body yet she wasn’t cold. Goosebumps scattered across her skin when Spike’s tongue briefly touched her in its exploration of her mouth. She felt her lower half being pulled forward by his hand resting on her hip. His other hand was buried in the hair at the nape of her neck. One by one she freed her arms from between their bodies where they had been crushed from him unexpectedly grabbing her and slamming their bodies together. She wrapped them both around his neck, helping her to lean in closer to him. But, she wanted to be closer than this. She wanted to feel so much more than what she was feeling right now.

Spike fought off the inner voice that was screaming at him to take her right then and there. He wanted to so badly. His body wanted to as well, which could be felt by the tightness in his pants, but he wouldn’t do it. Not here. Not like this.


Buffy gasped when she felt Spike jerk away suddenly. She fought to catch her breath as she watched him turn his back on her and start pacing. Why had he stopped? Did she do something wrong?

“Spike?”

Spike spun back around to look at her. His eyes transfixed by her heaving chest. Gods, she was beautiful. He loved the way she looked right now, the way her lips were swollen and red from his kisses.

“We have to get back,” was all he said to her before turning away again and starting back down the trial.

Buffy was confused. Not two minutes ago they were ready to devour each other and now he was back to crisp, conservative federal man. If girls could have a case of blue balls then she would be in some serious shit right now with all his mind flops. And it was realty starting to piss her off.

“What just happened here!?” she called after him, moving for the first time since she had been frozen into place by his kiss. “Hello? Are you even listening to me?”

Buffy tugged on his arm and jerked him around on his heels. She stared up at him waiting for him to answer her. He was not going to ignore her for days again, not if she had anything to do with it.

“Nothing happened here Buffy,” he answered very nonchalantly. He ran his hand over his face as he took in a deep breath. “Because I stopped us.”

“Ha,” Buffy scoffed. “Well that’s just great. Thank you so much for stopping it. Because heaven forbid that I – we – have a little excitement in our lives.”

“You’re being ridiculous.”

“No, I’m not,” she disagreed. “In fact I am so tired of this happening that I’m just going to go ahead and get what I want from Riley.”

“What!” Spike yelled, taken aback by her comment. “Now you’re just acting like a spoiled brat.”
Buffy exhaled sharply and ground her teeth together. “No, what I am is sexually frustrated.” She rolled her eyes when she saw the shocked look on Spike’s face after what she had just said. “Since you won’t do anything about it except add more fuel to the fire, I have decided to go get it from someone else.”

Spike grabbed her by the upper arm as she walked past him. “Don’t do this Buffy.”

Buffy tossed her hair over her shoulder as she looked back at him. “Watch me.” She started to walk away again, but felt that he wasn’t letting go.

“Don’t play this game Buffy.” He warned a final time.

Buffy let her head hang in defeat. Her shoulders slumped forward as she realized that there was no way to win this fight with Spike.

Spike felt her concede defeat and slowly started to let go of his hold on her. Once his arm was by his side he instantly regretted letting his own guard down so soon, because before he knew what was happening she was sprinting away into the trees.

“Dammit! Buffy!”

Buffy cried out in shock as she felt herself falling towards the earth. Her breath was knocked out of her when she hit the ground and felt Spike on top of her, his weight crushing her into the ground. The weight suddenly lifted as she felt herself being spun around, her back now in contact with the ground.

Spike had her pinned beneath him, the full force of his weight bearing down on her. He lowered his mouth to hers again and felt the fight in her disappear when she realized what his intentions were leaning towards. His body became tense when he felt one of her legs slighty wrap itself around his body.

“Don’t ever threaten to run off like that,” he gritted out all the while his mouth still played across hers.

Buffy clutched desperately onto him. Her breathing had become erratic again from the feel of his body so close to hers. She wasn’t sure how much more of these mind games her body and heart would be able to endure.

“Don’t do this,” she pleaded to him, not exactly sure why those words had escaped her mouth. “Please.”

Spike stopped kissing her and looked down wondering what she had meant.

“I thought this was what you wanted,” he finally retorted, his hand snaking its way down her body. “Me touching you like this.”

“Yes I do,” Her voice quivering when she felt his hand start to tug on the button of her jeans. “Don’t stop again. Finish.”